


Special Children

by LinkCat



Series: Love Makes A Difference [2]
Category: Trolls (2016)
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-28
Updated: 2018-12-06
Packaged: 2019-09-01 20:07:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 32,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16772008
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LinkCat/pseuds/LinkCat
Summary: King Branch and Queen Poppy's oldest daughter has a special gift. So does Guy Diamond's daughter River. Their gifts are explored and their family learns how to live with very special kids.Chapter 1 summary:Everyone gathers for Blossom’s fifth birthday party.





	1. Broken Birthday Party

**Author's Note:**

> This is part two of "Love Will Find A Way". This will a bigger focus on the children and their growing bonds.
> 
> Sorry a head of time for grammar mistakes. Hope you enjoy!

It had been five years since King Branch and Queen Poppy had found their new home and settled their village. Everything had been at peace, and their children, and the children of their family and friends have grown and thrived.

It was also Blossom’s fifth birthday. She had proven to everyone that she was determined to live a full and active life. She had residual nerve damage from her injuries prior to birth and fell a lot when she walked, but she still was able to get up and go. Cherry still thought it was a miracle that she could walk at all, so she took every little miracle her daughter gave with grins and giggles.

Cherry had made considerable improvement as well. She was a lot calmer and even showed a bit of a spunky side. She often got into little arguments with Branch and found all kinds of ways to get his hair in a twist. She had also started to form a relationship with Biggie. Ever since the day they met, Biggie had been helping her a lot. He helped her recover from her fall and helped her with raising Blossom. They were starting to get serious and had already set a day to get married.

Biggie came in their flower pod. He had a dress in his hand. “Look what Satin and Chenille made for our little princess!” He laid it out over the bed and grinned. He was very excited. He loved birthday parties, and he had plans to spoil Blossom all day.

Cherry walked over and looked at the little dress. It was white with pink flowers on it. “It’s so cute.” She picked it up and walked over to Blossom. She got her dressed and then went to finish getting dressed herself.

Blossom ran her hands across the lace on her little dress. She liked the texture. She began to try and pull it apart.

Biggie chuckled and stood her up. “Let’s keep this dress pretty for a little bit, ok?” He walked with her to the kitchen and put her cake in the oven.

“Yum…” Blossom watched him in the kitchen and reached up, wanting a taste.

“You will have some soon, ok sweetheart? Let’s go see if mama is ready.” He picked her up and walked towards the bedroom.

Cherry was making finishing touches to her hair, and then met Biggie. She took Blossom and kissed her cheek. “Happy Birthday my little princess. Are you ready for your birthday party?”

“Yes! Presents! I want a beetle!” Blossom grinned ear to ear and hugged into Cherry. She loved Mr. Dinkles, but she wanted a pet beetle. She loved Branch and Poppy’s pet beetle and wanted one too.

Biggie gave Cherry a cheeky grin. He knew she wanted a beetle and had made arrangements to make sure she got one.

Cherry winked at Biggie, and then took Blossom to the kitchen. When the cake was done, she had Blossom help her decorate the cake. She put it on the table and set a candle in it.

Guests began to arrive, and Biggie let them all in. Branch and Poppy were one of the first to arrive with their twins.

Lily had a small backpack with her. She set it down in the middle of the floor and pulled out paper. She began drawing on it immediately. She had a very determined look on her face.

Lotus walked right over to the toys and pulled out the glitter. He began covering himself with it.

Branch snuck up behind Cherry and put his hands over her eyes. “Guess who?”

Cherry startled and turned, smacking him upside the head, before gasping and putting her hand over her mouth. “Branch! You know better!”

Poppy snorted and began to giggle. “I am starting to think he likes being smacked.”

“Come on Cherry, you know it’s me that does that. Do you need to smack me every time?” Branch rubbed his head.

“You scared me! You know what happens when I am startled! I go into defense mode.” Cherry sighed and went to get some ice for his head.

“There is nothing to be defensive about here. Everyone knows each other, and we are not going to hurt each other.” Branch followed her and grumbled.

“Yeah, everyone knows each other alright. Just like you and Guy Diamond.” Cherry handed him ice and gave him a cheeky grin.

“Would you stop bringing that up?!” Branch put the ice to his head and groaned internally. He had been drunk at a party several months back and had slipped up that Guy Diamond and he had had an one night stand when they were in their early twenties. Cherry hadn’t let it go since.

“I saw the way you looked at him at River’s birthday party.” Cherry smirked and crossed her arms.

“Cherry, stop it!” Branch glared at her. His cheeks were flushed.

“Is he good in bed?” Cherry looked over at Poppy and smirked.

Poppy put her hand over her mouth and tried not to laugh.

“I’m warning you!” Branch sneered and gave her the stink eye.

“I will take that as a yes.” Cherry giggled and stuck her tongue out at him. She was only teasing.

“You are impossible!” Branch walked towards the living quarters to check on the kids. He wasn’t amused.

“And you can’t keep your pants on!” Cherry smirked and followed him.

“Gahhh!” Branch was blushing hard core now and blushed even brighter when he came around the corner and saw Guy Diamond. They looked at each other awkwardly. “Guy?! How much of that did you hear?”

“Erm, all of it.” Guy Diamond was bright red and couldn’t look at Cherry. She had embarrassed them both.

Poppy laughed hard and held her belly. “You two are as red as a rose right now.”

Smidge walked over and looked up a Branch. “Don’t worry buddy, I take good care of your pet now.” She gave him a demonic grin.

Branch groaned and put his hand over his face. He was so embarrassed. “That is very reassuring Smidge.”

In the front room, River had walked over to Blossom and quietly took her hand. The two had bonded and whenever they were together, they held hands. River kept Blossom upright better, then if she was doing it on her own, and she loved helping her friend. She didn’t understand it yet, but she was especially sensitive to everyone’s spiritual nature and Blossom’s aura was delicate and sweet. She liked the feeling she felt when near her.

Blossom began leading River towards the kitchen. She wanted some of the cake. She looked up and grinned. “Want some cake?” She pointed towards the table.

“I like cake.” River tried to reach, but she wasn’t tall enough to reach the table.

Blossom grinned and pulled herself up on one of the chairs. It was something she had never done before. She didn’t have a lot of upper body strength. She looked down at River and smiled. “I did it!” She reached over and grabbed the plate that the cake was on. She moved it closer and grabbed a handful of cake. 

Lily suddenly grabbed her right ankle and began to wail. Everyone scrambled over to her, worried that she might have somehow hurt herself. They checked her over and didn’t see anything wrong.

“Odd…” Branch set her down and pat her back gently. “It’s ok sweetheart, you are alright.”

Blossom reached down to give River some of the cake. She lost her footing and fell. Her right leg twisted when she landed on it, and her leg broke near the ankle. She had had a hold of the cake when she fell, and it landed right on top of her with a splat. She immediately began to cry in pain.

Cherry rushed into the kitchen and saw Blossom on the floor, covered in cake. She picked her up and checked her over. “What’s wrong baby?”

Lily stopped crying and followed her aunt into the kitchen. She went over and touched Blossom’s right leg. “Blossom has an owwie.” 

Branch saw this and looked shocked. How did Lily know how Blossom was hurt, or which body part it was? It was also weird that Lily seemed to sense the impending pain before it even happened, on her own body.

Biggie came in and saw her ankle. He looked at the table and frowned. “How on earth did she get up there?”

Branch went to get help. He soon came back with a medical troll, who checked Blossom over, and then took her away. Her leg was going to need fixed and she was going to need a cast.


	2. All That Glitters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch tries to make sense of Lily’s abilities.

Shortly after Blossom broke her leg, Branch took Lily aside and sat her on his knee. He smiled softly and gave her a hug. “Sweetheart, when you screamed in pain and held your leg, were you actually hurt?”

Lily shook her head and looked towards Biggie and Cherry’s home. “No…”

“When you did that is it because you knew Blossom would get hurt?” Branch was trying to keep the questions simple, knowing she was only five.

“Yes…” Lily frowned and looked up at him. She looked sad. “Her leg hurts and she is mad.” Lily pointed again to her own right leg. She looked upset.

Branch sighed and hugged her again. “I know her leg hurts baby. She hurt it bad. She’s going to have her leg in a cast for a couple of months.”

“Can she still play?” Lily looked worried. She loved playing with stuffies with Blossom. Blossom had a vivid imagination and it was fun.

“Yes, she can still play but we need to be gentle, ok?” Branch sat her down. “If you have weird feelings again, you tell me ok?” He wanted to understand more, but he needed more information. He tried to think of who he could consult with. The only one he could think of was former king Peppy, and the old troll was starting to go senile. He wasn’t sure if any information he got from him would be useful.

“Ok daddy.” Lily walked over to Lotus and hugged into him. She was still worried about Blossom and wanted reassurance from her younger twin.

Lotus looked at his sister, and then hugged her back. He smiled and offered her a chunk of clay that he had been playing with. It was the shape of a worm. “Here you go sissy. A worm for you.” He looked happy. He was a very easy going boy.

Branch got up and walked over to Poppy. “I am not sure how, but she knew Blossom was going to get hurt before it even happened.”

“It was a coincidence.” Poppy reassured him and booped him on the nose. “She probably just had a charley horse.”

“I’m not so sure. She seemed to know which leg was injured.” Branch sighed looked towards Cherry’s flower pod. “Poor girl. What a horrible thing to have happen on your birthday.”

Blossom was back at home with a cast wrapped around her right leg. She had tried several times now to get up, but she couldn’t get up because of the bulky cast. She was frustrated and had began trying to pull the cast apart.

Cherry was clean up cake from the floor in the kitchen. She felt so bad. She was normally so diligent about where her daughter was, and what she was doing. It really bothered her that she had got hurt.

Biggie was helping her clean up but stopped when he realized that Blossom was trying to pull her cast apart. “Don’t do that princess. You need the cast, so your leg can heal.”

“No!” Blossom crossed her arms and scrunched up her face. “Yucky present! Take it off!” She looked up at him. She looked angry.

“I know it is a yucky present. How about I give you your present from mama and I?” Biggie picked her up and walked towards her room.

“No!” Blossom pushed at him in an attempt to get away, but Biggie had a good hold of her, so she didn’t budge.

Cherry followed Biggie. She was hoping that their present would cheer her up. She wanted Blossom to feel better. She knew a broken leg hurt badly.

Biggie opened the door to Blossom’s room and set her down on the ground. He walked over to a glowing white beetle with black stripes and brown antenna. He picked her up and sat in front of Blossom. “Are you sure you don’t want her?”

Blossom’s eyes went wide, and she reached her arms out. “Yay! My beetle!” Her cranky face quickly melted away.

Biggie set the beetle down. “Yes, little princess, this is your beetle. Do you know what you want to name her?” He set Mr. Dinkles down too, so he could check the beetle over. 

“Her name is Penny!” Blossom pet her new pet beetle and grinned. She was a very happy girl and had temporarily forgot about the annoying cast.

“That is a very cute name Blossom.” Cherry sat down by her. “No more climbing on things without asking for help, ok?”

“Ok mama.” Blossom grabbed her beetle and hugged into her. She couldn’t wait to show her cousins and friends her new pet.


	3. Flower Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Biggie and Cherry get married and have a huge party.

A couple of weeks later, Cherry was getting ready for her big day with Biggie. Satin and Chenille were helping her get all pretty. She had a pretty light rose dress and her hair was done up in bows. When she was ready to go, she walked with the twins towards the front of the troll tree. She was nervous and could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

Biggie was dressed up nice too and had Mr. Dinkles in a tuxedo and Penny in a partial dress and bow. Mr. Dinkles had attached himself to Biggie’s shoulder, and Penny stood by his left leg. He had Blossom in his right arm. She was dressed in a baby blue dress and had a matching bow at the tip of her hair. She had her arms folded and was angry. She still had a cast and wasn’t the flower girl, like originally planned. She wanted to be the flower girl.

Smidge was getting the little flower girl ready. Daisy had been chosen to spread the flowers at the wedding. She got her dressed up in a pastel green dress and matching bow and handed her the basket of petals. “Do you remember what to do?”

“Yes mama.” Daisy held the basket in one hand and examined the dress with her other hand. She didn’t like how clothes felt.

Guy Diamond had River and Emery all dressed up too. He walked them over and smiled at Daisy. “You are so cute sweetheart.”

Smidge was sporting a light orange dress with a matching bow, and Guy Diamond had a brown tuxedo on.

River was sporting a baby pink dress and a matching bow in her hair. She was swirling around and giggled. She loved how the dress felt and loved that it twirled.

Emery didn’t like clothes either and was already trying to pull his pants off. He had a tuxedo that was yellow with a yellow bow at the neck.

Guy Diamond pulled Emery’s pants back up. “Not until later kiddo.” He kissed Smidge, and then walked towards Branch and Poppy’s flower pod to see how they were doing.

Poppy was all ready to go. She was wearing a light blue dress with lace trimming. She ran her hand over her belly. She was with pod, and the dress really showed off her tiny baby bump.

Lily was dressed in a lilac colored dress with a matching bow. Lotus was in a tuxedo, just like Emery’s. He was trying to pull the bow off his neck.

Branch was going through the plans and was trying to make sure he had everything in order. He wanted this day to be perfect for his little sister. After all that she had been through, he did try to spoil her, even though he frequently gave her a hard time. Once he decided everything was alright, he got dressed in a royal blue tuxedo and came out. He picked up Lotus. “Let’s go.”

Poppy kissed him. “You look handsome.” She picked up Lily and headed towards the base of the troll tree.

As everyone started to gather, Daisy began throwing flower petals around. When she was done, she dropped the basket and looked around at all the other trolls. She pulled off her dress and giggled before bolting off. Smidge grabbed the dress and ran after her.

Biggie chuckled and watched her run off. He had a feeling the glitter trollings were going to struggle keeping their clothes on.

Cherry smiled and watched Daisy run off. She was amused, and not surprised at all. She took Biggie’s hand and looked at Branch. 

Guy Diamond had Blossom in his lap. He had volunteered to watch her for the night so that they could have their special first night alone.

Branch smiled at his sister and opened his book. He cleared his throat. He began to go through the vows. When he was done, he announced them as husband and wife.

Biggie picked up Cherry and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him back. She was very happy to be a part of his life.

Everyone cheered with joy and everyone began to sing and dance. They were happy for the new couple.

Later that night, Biggie helped Cherry undress. He had a smug look on his face as he ran his hands down her hips.

“Mmm…hold on a second. Not yet.” Cherry moved his hands and pulled out a bottle from her hair. Poppy had given message oil to her privately during the party as a wedding gift. “We need to work out those knots.” She pinned him to the bed and began messaging him with the message oil.

Biggie groaned and let her message him. “Your hands are magical.” He purred and closed his eyes, feeling his member begin to swell with her touch.

Cherry worked her hands down his back, and then had him roll over. She kissed him and ran her finger down his chest. “Mine…”

Biggie shivered and pulled her close. He kissed her and ran his hands along her hair. “Mmm…I love you.” He rolled her over and licked along her neck and down her chest. He stopped at her vulva and began to message it gently with the tip of his tongue.

Cherry gasped and grabbed onto his hair as he ran his teeth along her delicate clitoris. She moaned his name and shuddered with ecstasy.

Biggie shifted and laid over her. He kissed her before filling her with his length. He began to thrust eagerly.

Cherry pulled his hair lightly and moaned his name. She could feel her walls tighten around his throbbing member. She rocked her hips with his thrusts. She began telling him that she loved him repeatedly. She was extremely pleased.

This continued well into the night and into the morning. Those that lived around them had to wear ear plugs or put a pillow over their head. The newly married couple were very pleased, and they were not afraid to voice it.


	4. A Very Bad Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smidge and River have a very bad day.

Two weeks had gone by and it was time for the trollings to start school. They were prepared by their parents and walked to school. Branch, Poppy, Guy Diamond, Cherry, and Biggie were there to watch them off. Smidge had told Guy Diamond that she wasn’t up to getting out of bed.

Smidge was curled up in bed. Her aura was dimmed, and her skin tones were gray. She had wanted to be there for Daisy, Emery, and River, but she was having a very rough morning. She hugged into the pillow and cried softly. She was waiting for Guy Diamond to get home. She needed to talk to him. She had had a very long night and hadn’t got any sleep since waking up in the middle of the night.

Guy soon came in the flower pod and walked to the bedroom. He was worried. It wasn’t like Smidge to miss out on any of the trollings firsts. He sat by her and frowned, noticing she had been crying. His heart sank, fearing he already knew what was wrong. He pulled her into a hug and rubbed her back gently. “I am taking you to the medical pod.” He held her and headed for the door.

Smidge cried into his chest and held onto him. She thought it was sad that she didn’t even have to tell him what happened this time. He seemed to know, without her telling him that she had miscarried during the early morning hours. They had been trying for two years to have another child, and she wasn’t making it to term with any of her recent pregnancies. “I am so sorry...” She felt so guilty and blamed herself for their losses.

“You have nothing to be sorry about.” Guy Diamond carried her to the medical pod. He was trying hard to stay strong for her by his own heart ached. They both wanted another baby. He wasn’t sure how to help her other than support her. He set her down and explained what he had seen and suspected. Smidge’s blood was smeared on his body. They got to work making sure she wasn’t in any danger from this loss.

After getting her settled, Guy Diamond walked towards their flower pod to take a quick shower and to grab clean clothes for Smidge. His aura was dimmed and even hinting towards gray.

Branch saw Guy Diamond walking back. He grabbed Poppy’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze before walking over to him. Poppy quietly walked with him. He saw the blood and winced. He recalled seeing this happen before. He didn’t dare ask and upset him further. “Is there anything we can do?”

“We need a babysitter.” Guy Diamond looked down. “Smidge and I need a day.”

“Of course. We will pick them up and bring them to our flower pod for the night.” Poppy volunteered. She felt her heart sink. She knew it was hard for Smidge and Guy Diamond. She felt bad for them.

Guy Diamond thanked them and went to the flower pod. He quietly cried as he showered and packed a bag. He headed back when he was done to be there for Smidge. She needed him, and he needed her.

The day wasn’t much better for their youngest daughter either. During rest or play, an older trolling had pinned River to the ground. “You don’t look like a River to me. More like that bastard Creek.” He recalled the day Creek had mass murdered several trolls, one of which was his own father. He didn’t like Creek at all and River looked so much like her father Creek.

River winced when he pinned her down and looked up at him with wide eyes. She didn’t understand why he was being mean to her. She teared up and wriggled under him. “Let me go.” His aura was dark and full of nasty vibes. She was scared.

“Aww, are you going to cry?” He pulled her hair and sneered. “I don’t care!”

Blossom saw that River was being picked on. She crawled over and yanked her cast off. She stood up, not caring that her ankle hurt. She whacked him on the head with her cast. “Leave her alone!”

The teacher came over and pulled the older trolling off River. “You know better, Acorn! Apologize!”

Acorn huffed and crossed his arms. “Fine, Sorry.” He looked away not feeling any sympathy. He had already decided he hated River’s guts, even though it wasn’t her fault that she came to be under dark circumstances.

The teacher put Blossom’s cast back on and helped River back up. She walked her to the bathroom. The poor girl had peed herself in fear.

When class was over, Branch was there to pick up the kids. The teacher explained what had happened between River, Blossom, and Acorn to him. They decided that Acorn would be suspended for a day as punishment. Branch was going to keep an eye on him too. He wasn’t going to tolerate that kind of behavior.

Branch led the kids home. He had picked up Blossom too and carried her to Cherry and Biggie’s flower pod. When he arrived, he explained what she had done.

“You should really stop hitting me in front of the kids. I don’t want them getting in trouble or getting into more fights.” Branch looked a little stern. He was protective of the children.

“Then stop sneaking up on me.” Cherry scrunched up her face in disgust. He was just as much at fault for this as she was.

“Fine, you have a deal.” Branch sighed and gave her a hug. He then walked towards the royal flower pod with Daisy, Emery, River, Lily, and Lotus. It was going to be a long night trying to get five, five-year olds to sleep.


	5. Charred Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trollings are doing OK in school so far, but everything is about to take a dark turn.

A few weeks went by, and the trollings seemed to be adjusting OK to school. River was a lot warier and stayed close to her brother and sister. Blossom was never far from her side either.

Acorn left River alone for now. He stuck close to the older trollings, that were closer to the same age as him. He didn’t want to get busted again.

School was fascinating for Lily. She leaned forward in class and picked everything up very quickly. She was the most successful of her classmates and was starting to get ahead. Emery was not far behind her. His only struggle was art class. He didn’t like to get his hands dirty.

Lotus and Daisy spent most of their time playing with glitter and paint. They rarely went home clean.

River struggled to stay focused. Everyone’s auras and spiritual presence were distracting. She had already figured out light colored auras were safe and dark auras were bad and scary. Everyone’s auras changed regularly so she watched them and tried to read what the auras meant. It was not easy for her though. She often misinterpreted their auras. 

Blossom’s biggest struggle had an obvious cause. She couldn’t keep up with anyone when they walked or ran. She was no longer in a cast, but her motor skills were limited due to her spinal cord injury. She was often found in the corner, hugging into River and crying in frustration.

When Cherry picked Blossom up from school, she walked with her towards the flower pod. “How was school today?”

“I can’t run. Why am I different?” Blossom looked up at her and frowned. She didn’t understand why she couldn’t run, but everyone else could.

Cherry knelt down and hugged her, before picking her up. She was hoping she wouldn’t have this talk until Blossom was older, but she hated seeing her so frustrated. “Sweetheart, when I was pregnant with you, I had a really bad fall. You were hurt too, and it caused you to have problems using your arms and legs. I am sorry that running is hard, but you are a very strong little girl. Don’t give up on running sweetheart. You can do it.” She smiled at her encouragingly.

“OK mama.” Blossom hugged onto her and buried her face into her mom’s dress. She was tired today. She needed a nap.

Cherry got her home and laid her down for a nap. She came to the living room and snuggled into Biggie. He had been working on a photo album but stopped when she snuggled to him. She felt his arm wrap around her and smiled. He always made her feel warm and safe.

“She looked tired today. Did you lay her down for a nap?” Biggie ran his hand through her baby pink hair and began giving her a scalp message.

Cherry purred and nodded slowly. “Yeah, she is taking a nap.” She closed her eyes. His hand in her hair felt amazing. She didn’t want him to stop, but she also was too tired to return the favor.

“You look like you could use one too.” Biggie kissed her forehead gently. “I can cook dinner tonight.”

“You in the kitchen? That is a little scary. I will handle dinner.” Cherry half teased. He wasn’t the best cook, but she didn’t mind if he cooked for them anyway. She was definitely tired.

“I insist. Do you have any preferences?” Biggie played with her hair and smiled at her. She made him so happy.

“No preferences tonight.” Cherry said sleepily. His scalp message was putting her to sleep.

Biggie chuckled and gently picked her up. He carried her to bed and laid her down. “Get some rest. I got this.”

“Thank you Biggie.” Cherry slowly drifted off to sleep.

About an hour later, Cherry woke up to the smell of smoke. She got out of bed and ran to grab Blossom from her bedroom. She picked her up and ran for the door but stopped seeing that Biggie trying to put out flames by the oven. She ran over to him and grabbed his hand before running outside with him. She got outside and began to cough. She held Blossom tight. That had been terrifying.

Biggie ran out of their flower pod with Cherry, and then turned. He widened his eyes and ran back. “I need to save Mr. Dinkles and Penny!”

“No! Biggie come back!” Cherry went to chase him but was stopped by Branch. “Let me go! I can’t lose him too!”

“You can’t go back in!” Branch held her and hugged her to him. He called out for help. He was very worried about Biggie.

Biggie got inside and looked around for their pets. The fire was quickly spreading. He found Mr. Dinkles by the bedroom door and grabbed him. He coughed as he looked for Penny. He found her under the couch. He grabbed her and hurried outside. When he got outside he fell to his knees. He began to cough hard. He had mild burns on his arms and legs, and smoke inhalation but had managed to get out in time. He turned, watching five years of their hard work go down in flames.

DJ Suki ran over and helped Biggie up. She moved him away from the burning flower pod. “Biggie! Thank goodness!”

Cherry ran over to them and hugged him tight. She was sobbing. “I thought I lost you!”

Blossom was sandwiched between her mama and stepdaddy. She couldn’t stop looking at the fire. She seemed to be in a state of shock. She didn’t like that her mom was upset.

Biggie winced but hugged her back. Their two pets were in his other arm. “I am sorry I scared you.” He felt awful. He had accidentally started the fire while cooking dinner. 

A team of trolls worked together to get water from the lake and quickly put the fire out.

“Let’s get Biggie checked out at the medical pod. He’s injured.” Branch walked them towards the medical pod. That had been way too close.

Cherry walked with them and held Blossom close. She had tears running down her cheeks. She had almost lost Biggie. It brought back very bad memories.

Biggie was checked over in the medical pod and told to stay there for the night since he had breathed in a considerable amount of smoke. He was going to be ok, but no one was taking any chances.

Cherry was sitting by his bed. Blossom had fallen asleep, snuggled up to her in her lap. She looked wary and exhausted from worry. She also didn’t feel too hot.

“I’m going to be OK my love. Don’t fret.” Biggie tried to reassure her. He knew she was worried. “I am sorry again for scaring you.”

“I don’t feel good.” Cherry whispered. She set Blossom by him, and then ran to the bathroom. She began getting sick.

Biggie watched her bolt and frowned. “Can someone please check Cherry for me?”

One of the medical trolls stayed with Cherry and talked to her.

After about ten minutes Cherry came back, feeling a little better. She sat by him and hugged into him gently.

“Are you alright?” Biggie put his hand over her hand. He was worried.

“I am alright.” Cherry smiled softly. “Biggie, I just talked to one of the medical trolls. We are expecting.”

“Expecting what?” It went right over Biggie’s head. He was still very dazed and dizzy from the smoke inhalation. He winced and began to cough.

Cherry helped him sit up and waited for him to cough it out. She was still very worried about him. When he calmed down, she had him lay back down again. She took his hand and smiled softly. “We are expecting a baby. I am with pod.”

Biggie settled down and smiled at Cherry when she told him. He squeezed her hand gently. “This is good news.” He wanted to spoil her, but it was going to have to wait until he felt better. After a terrible evening, they both needed this good news.


	6. A Big Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cherry and Biggie have lost their home in a kitchen fire. It’s time for them to rebuild.

Branch quickly got word that his sister wasn’t feeling very well. Concerned for her and for Biggie as well, he went and picked up Blossom. He would watch her until Biggie got released from the medical pod. He carried her home and set her down by Lily. “Sleep little one.”

Blossom snuggled up to Lily and was soon sound asleep. It had been a long day for her.

Satisfied that she was asleep, Branch walked to the bedroom and kissed Poppy’s cheek. “I’ve got some work to do in the bunker. I will be back to check on you and the little ones in a few hours.”

Poppy rolled over and yawned. She already knew what had happened but wasn’t expecting him to do anything more tonight. He had been scrambling around since the fire started hours earlier. “You should get some sleep.”

“I need to do this while the children are asleep. Rest, I will be home in a few hours to check in.” Branch kissed her, and then headed out the door and towards his bunker.

Everyone who knew Branch, knew he kept a steady supply down in his bunker for emergencies. The fire was definitely considered an emergency.

Branch got to his bunker and grabbed a backpack. He began filling it with supplies and food. When he grabbed as much as he could carry, he headed towards Biggie and Cherry’s burnt flower pod.

DJ Suki, Cooper, Fuzzbert, Guy Diamond, Satin, and Chenille were all working hard to salvage what they could out of the remains and were starting to get the burnt material moved away. Smidge had stayed home but did want to help. She needed to be home for the kids, and Guy Diamond had insisted she rest.

Branch arrived and began emptying supplies nearby. When he had it all spread out, he began making his way back to the bunker to grab more. He had a very determined look on his face. He was going to help his sister and brother in law rebuild their home before Biggie was even released from the medical pod.

“Branch?” The medical troll who had talked to Cherry ran over and smiled at him. “I know what you are doing, and I want to make sure you know they are going to need another room soon. I know Cherry will appreciate it.”

“Thank you…” Branch nodded and continued on his way. He had already planned on making this flower pod a little bigger. He had suspicions that Blossom wasn’t going to be an only child for long.

The long process of collecting everything and rebuilding took all night, and well into the morning. A commotion was heard as trolls began to wake up and discovered that there was a new flower pod in place for the one that Biggie and Cherry had lost.

When Biggie was released from the medical pod, he came out, holding Cherry’s hand. They had no idea that Branch had hatched a plan and were going to surprise them. They had planned this morning to search through everything and start rebuilding. As they turned the corner, their jaws dropped. To their surprise, there sat a new flower pod, larger than their old one, and looking all shiny and new.

“Surprise!” Everyone cheered as they came around the corner. 

“How?!” Biggie walked over with Cherry and looked at the flower pod. “How on earth did you guys get this done so quickly?”

Cherry had tears in her eyes as she walked over to flower pod. She wasn’t expecting this and was extremely grateful. “This has Branch written all over it.” 

Branch came up and hugged Cherry. “It didn’t do it alone. I had help.” He took her hand and led her inside. He gave them a tour of their new home. He couldn’t save many photos, but he did have some of his own, and had brought them over for them. He was glad that Biggie had given him several family photos.

“Thank you so much Branch. We really appreciate what you all have done for us.” Biggie looked around and smiled. It was a huge relief having a new home. He was so grateful for his friends. Now he could focus on feeling better and taking care of his growing family.


	7. Ragging Aura

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tension builds when Smidge finds out Cherry is expecting.

A couple of weeks went by since the fire, and everything seemed to be settling down again. Blossom had been a little quiet, but everyone dismissed it as trauma after the house fire. Biggie was making a good recovery and had no lasting effect from the fire.

Cherry had kept her pregnancy under cover for now. She wasn’t ready to tell everyone yet. She was still very shaken by the flower pod fire and hadn’t been in the mood to share yet.

As the little trollings began to gather for school, Cherry walked Blossom over. She had felt nauseous today, but insisted she still drop Blossom off. She arrived and held her daughter’s hand as they waited for the teacher.

Smidge and Guy Diamond led their trio of trollings over as well and stood by Cherry as they waited for the teacher to arrive.

Cherry smiled softly in greeting, but it turned into a frown when the color began to leave her face. She ran over to a trashcan and began to get sick.

Smidge frowned and could feel a twinge of jealous prick her heart like a needle to a balloon. She had a feeling she knew why Cherry got sick. She bit her bottom lip. Her friends were pregnant, and she had lost her baby five weeks prior. She was very frustrated.

“Are you feeling ok Cherry?” Guy Diamond inquired. He looked concerned.

“Yeah, I am alright. It’ll pass with time.” Cherry held her stomach as she walked back over and took Blossom’s hand again.

River looked up at her mama and noticed that her aura was raging red. It made her squirm a little. She moved so she was closer to her daddy.

After the teacher picked up the kids, Smidge and Guy Diamond walked towards their flower pod. Smidge was thinking hard. She really wanted to give having another baby another shot. She really wanted another little one to love.

Once they went back into the flower pod, Smidge turned to Guy Diamond and clung to him like glue. She looked up at him and gave him a playful grin. “The kids are at school. Let’s go to the bedroom.”

Guy Diamond frowned and hugged her. He knelt and ran his hand through her hair. “Smidge, sweetheart, I am sorry but not right now.” He wasn’t ready. He knew what she wanted, but he wanted her to rest and recover a little longer. It was too soon.

“Please…” Smidge buried her face into his glitter covered skin. She was frustrated. She wanted a baby so bad.

“Sorry…” Guy Diamond let her go and walked towards his work bench. He was working on making a toy for River.

Smidge grabbed onto his ankle and felt her body drag across the floor as he went towards the work bench. “I want another baby.”

“So do I Smidge, but I am not ready. It’s only been five weeks. You need time to heal, and so do I.” Guy Diamond grabbed his box of glitter and closed his eyes. His heart ached and didn’t like seeing her beg.

“In a few more days?” Smidge got up and looked up at him, hopeful.

“No Smidge, in a few more months.” Guy Diamond feared they kept rushing too fast to try again. He thought perhaps if they waited this time, their chances would be better.

“Three months is a long time to wait!” Smidge grit her teeth and clenched her fists. “I’ve already had to wait this long. I don’t want to wait longer!”

“Please don’t fight me Smidge. This is for your health and our sanity. It’s not good for you to have this much loss and not have some time to heal.” Guy Diamond felt tears sting his eyes. He didn’t want to fight over this. His heart hurt, and he was still grieving.

“I will heal when I have another baby!” Smidge yelled at him, frustrated over the situation.

Guy Diamond slammed his box of glitter down, breaking it and making glitter go all over. He looked down at her and clenched his fists. “Damn it Smidge, the answer is no!”

Smidge’s eyes went wide as a cloud of glitter went all over. She had just cleaned that area this morning and now it was covered with glitter again. She glared at him and crossed him arms. “Great! Now I have a mess to clean up! Thanks a lot!”

“I’ll clean it up. Don’t get your panties in a twist!” Guy Diamond threw his glitter box away and went to grab a broom. He began sweeping it up.

“This isn’t over!” Smidge threw one of their couch cushions at him, and then walked out the door, slamming it behind her.

Guy Diamond felt the cushion hit him. He sighed and picked it up. He brushed the glitter off of it and put it on the couch. He understood that she was frustrated, but he was trying to protect her and wasn’t ready. He sat down and put his face into his hands. He began to cry. He didn’t want to bury another baby.

Smidge walked over to the lake and sat down at the beach. She hugged into her knees and looked at the water. Tears were running down her cheeks.

The sounds of fighting had Poppy out of bed a little early. Branch had walked the trollings to school today. She got dressed and peeked outside. She saw Smidge by at the beach and walked towards her. She was getting close to her due date, and was heavy with pod, but she was worried about Smidge. She rarely heard her fight with Guy Diamond. She carefully sat down next to her and put her hand on her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”

Smidge shrugged and looked away. “I’m being a selfish jerk.”

“Says who?” Poppy looked concerned. It had been a while since she had seen Smidge this angry.

“I don’t want to talk about it Poppy.” Smidge buried her face into her hands and began to cry.

“Are you and Guy doing ok?” Poppy pushed gently. She wanted to help but wasn’t sure how to help them.

“He wants to wait. I don’t want to.” Smidge sniffled and rubbed her eyes.

“I’m sorry Smidge.” Poppy pulled her into a hug and gave her a gentle squeeze. She was sad for her.

“I just want another baby. He says he is not ready.” Smidge sounded angry when she said ‘he.’ “It isn’t fair.”

“Give him a little time Smidge. I know it hurts, but he is hurting too.” Poppy hugged her again. “Maybe you two can work out a compromise. It’ll work out.”

Smidge hugged into her and closed her eyes. She could feel Poppy’s baby moving when they hugged. She wanted that so bad. She sniffled and looked up at Poppy. “You are right. I better go apologize…”

“Before you go, can you help me back up?” Poppy smiled softly. Sitting was easier right now then getting back up.

“Of course.” Smidge helped Poppy to her feet and then walked her back to the royal flower pod. When Poppy went in, she walked back to her flower pod. She walked in and closed the door. She saw Guy Diamond on the couch.

Guy Diamond stood up when she came in and wiped his face of tears. “Sorry Smidge, I was taking a break.”

Smidge walked over to him and gave him a hug. She began to cry. “I am so sorry Guy. I was being a jerk.”

Guy hugged her back and held her. He cried with her. “I’m just not ready.”

“I know you are not. We will wait. I am sorry for taking my frustration out on you.” Smidge sniffled and held onto him tight. She wasn’t sure when, or how, but they were going to find away to add another baby to their family. She was determined.


	8. A Little Jazz

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy’s due date is coming up, but things do not go according plan.

A couple more weeks went by, and Poppy was really close to her due date. She spent most of her time at home scrapbooking. She was bored but didn’t have the energy to do any of her regular duties. A lot of the royal tasks had been passed on to Guy Diamond and Smidge. Branch also helped them, but often checked on Poppy.

Today was another busy day for the village. Branch had a lot of errands to run. His first task was getting the twins to school. Once they were off to school, he checked on Poppy. She was in bed, taking a nap. He kissed her cheek, and then took off again. He walked towards the bunker. He had stored old baby books, supplies, and toys there. He wanted to retrieve them before Poppy had their baby.

Branch went into the bunker and made his way down. When he got to the room he wanted, he stepped off and walked towards the storage area. The box was on top of a shelf. He reached up to grab it, and suddenly felt a sharp stinging pain. He looked up, seeing a poisonous spider. His eyes went wide. “Damn!” He squished it, and then hurried out of the bunker. Once out, he began to make a mad dash for the medical pod, knowing that he was likely going to get sick from the poison. He made it half way there before collapsing and passing out.

Back at the flower pod, Poppy woke up to an intense pain in her belly. She sat up, knowing that feeling all too well. She got up and stiffly walked to the bathroom. “Branch?” She called out. She frowned not hearing him. She felt another contraction and winced. She held her belly and breathed through it. When it was done, she checked the time. “Where is he?” She finished in the bathroom and made her way towards the bedroom. She laid down and hugged into a pillow. When the next contraction came, she checked the time. Her eyes widened, noticing they were way closer together then she expected. 

DJ Suki was the one to find Branch, roughly an hour later. She rushed to him and checked him. “Branch?!” She shook him and frowned when she got no response. She picked him up and ran towards the medical pod.

Back at their flower pod, Poppy was making her way towards the front door. She was alone and didn’t like the idea of having her baby without anyone there. It wasn’t exactly the safest thing to do alone. She got to the front door and screamed. “Branch!” She winced and held her stomach. This baby seemed to be in a big hurry to arrive. She leaned on the door frame and groaned.

DJ Suki arrived at the medical pod with Branch. She set him down on a bed, and the medical trolls went to work on him. They quickly found the spider bite and gave him medicine to help reverse the effect of the poison.

Help for Poppy wasn’t coming as quickly. She called him one more time, and then turned and headed back towards her bed. She was starting to sweat. She crawled into the bed and let out a sob. She could feel that the baby was coming. “Help!” She looked up, hearing little foot steps run into the bedroom. She looked up and widened her eyes, seeing her young daughter. “Lily?!”

Lily had run all the way home from school. She had a feeling her mama was in danger and pain and come home to make sure she was ok. She crawled into the bed and widened her eyes, seeing that her mama was bleeding.

“Get a blanket baby. Hurry! Please sweetheart…” Poppy breathed. She was getting close to delivering the baby.

Lily got down and ran to her bedroom. She came back with a blanket and gave it to Poppy. “You are in pain mama.” She looked scared.

Poppy screamed in pain as she delivered a healthy son. He was violet with purple hair. He began to cry right away. She cleaned him with the blanket. She was shaking from shock and surprise. She wasn’t expecting to deliver this quickly and without Branch. “Lily, did you see daddy?”

“Daddy was bit by a spider. He is very sick.” Lily looked at her baby brother and placed her hand on his cheek. “The baby is small mama.”

“What?!” Poppy widened her eyes. She was really worried now. “Lily, go get Smidge or Guy Diamond for me? Please, it’s very important.”

Lily gave a firm nod. She ran out of the flower pod and began to look for Smidge or Guy Diamond. She found Guy Diamond a few flower pods down, talking to Cooper. She tugged on his hand. “Mama needs you right now!”

Guy Diamond frowned and picked her up. “Alright, is she in her flower pod?” He headed that way.

Lily nodded. “Yeah!” She held onto him tight. She looked worried. Her body was giving her mixed messages from her powers, and she didn’t like it.

As Guy Diamond approached the flower pod, he could hear the cries of a newborn baby. “Oh no!” He ran as fast as he could to the door and went in. He found Poppy in the bed, holding the newborn close. “Are you ok?!”

“I am fine, but something is wrong with Branch.” Poppy looked scared. Now that she was with another adult, she felt better. She carefully got up and headed straight for the medical pod with her little son in her arms. She knew she might find him there, or at least send for help if he wasn’t.

“Whoa! You just gave birth! Where are you going?!” Guy Diamond followed her, concerned.

“I need to find Branch!” Poppy walked at a slow pace but was determined to get there as fast as her legs would allow. They were feeling wobbly, but she ignored it. She was a troll on a mission.

Guy Diamond walked with her. He wanted to make sure she didn’t faint or anything.

Poppy got to the medical pod and looked around. She was swarmed by concerned medical trolls. “Is Branch here?!”

DJ Suki looked up. She was getting ready to go tell Poppy what was going on. She hurried over and put her hands over her mouth when she saw the baby. “Oh no! Poppy I am so sorry! I was waiting to make sure he was ok. It looks like he got bit by a poisonous spider. I didn’t want to leave until they were sure he was going to be ok, but I knew you needed to be checked on.” She felt bad for not coming to check on her sooner. She didn’t know Poppy was in labor. She was worried that Branch would die.

“Take me to him.” Poppy looked worried as she was led to Branch’s bed. She crawled into bed with him and held their son close. She hugged into him and sniffled. “Our little Jazz is here Branch. Please wake up…”

“Jazz?” Guy Diamond sat in a chair next to the bed. He looked worried. He hoped Branch would be ok.

“Yeah, if we had a son, that was what Branch wanted to name him.” Poppy started to cry. She was very worried about him.


	9. What Dreams Are Made Of

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch is very sick, and everyone is worried about him.

As the day went on, Branch’s condition didn’t seem to get better. He had a high fever from the poison. He shivered and was covered in sweat. Poppy was right beside him. She was exhausted from giving birth, but she was so worried about him. 

Lily was restless. She could sense her daddy’s pain, and it was upsetting her. She cried and hugged into Lotus. She wanted her daddy to feel better.

Guy Diamond had taken them home so that the only little one that Poppy had to worry about was Jazz since he was a newborn and would need to nurse off mama. He was trying hard to distract Lily, but she was inconsolable.

Branch groaned and shifted a bit in his bed. He held onto the side of the bed and let out a softly cry. He was starting to dream.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A five-year-old Branch was sitting in the corner. He found himself here often. He spent most of his young life protecting his little sister. Cherry was very adventurous and would often find herself in trouble for getting into food and taking treats from the cabinet. 

Earlier that morning, he had caught Cherry getting into his stepfather’s cookies. He had stopped her and grabbed the cookie out of her hand. He had gotten caught with the cookie in his hand and was punished for stealing it.

His mother came home and saw that Branch had a black eye. A fight broke out between his mom and his stepdad. He watched with wide eyes as his mother was beaten. He ran to get Cherry. He held her as their mother let out cries of pain.

The sound of bones cracking startled young Branch. It was not the first time he had heard that sound. He had broken his arm earlier that week and recalled the sound it made. He began to cry, knowing how much it hurt.

His stepfather stopped and walked over to Branch. He smacked him and told him to stop crying.

Branch quieted down and got between his stepdad and Cherry. He was very protective of his little sister.

Cherry was ripped from Branch’s grasp and taken away from Branch. He held out his hands as she was taken away. He looked over at his mother’s lifeless body. He walked over and put his hand on her back. Even at such a young age, he could tell something wasn’t right with her. He turned and began to run.

“Branch?!” His stepfather yelled. He could see that the boy was running off.

Branch’s skin tones turned gray as he ran as fast as his little legs could go. He could hear his stepfather behind him. He stopped under a mushroom and blended into the surrounding area.

His stepfather looked around for him. Branch watched as he passed right by the mushroom that he was hiding under.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

“Branch?! Wake up love. You are having a nightmare.” Poppy shook Branch gently. She was so worried about him and didn’t like that he was crying out. She really wanted him to wake up. He still wasn’t coming out of the feverish nightmare.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Branch’s heart raced. He was worried that his stepfather would find him. No one could leave the village and he knew this. He just couldn’t stay there anymore. He had to get away.

His stepfather walked away and continued his search for his stepson. He had plans of killing the boy off since his mother was dead. He had no use for him anymore.

Branch waited until he was out of sight, before running again. He ran for as long as he could, until he crawled into an abandoned worm hole and fell asleep for the night.

The next morning, he crawled out and began to walk. He was far too young to be out alone, but he wasn’t going to go back.

A few more days went by, before he stopped and curled up under a leaf. He was so hungry, and his body was starting to shut down. He was in desperate need of nourishment and medical care.

Moments later, he felt a small hand on his cheek. He looked up, seeing a round pink face with bright pink hair. It was Poppy. He winced, feeling arms wrap around him. King Peppy had picked him up.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Poppy took a cold wash clothe and wiped Branch’s face. She was so worried. Branch’s fever wasn’t breaking, and she feared that the spider bite might kill him. “Please don’t die on me. We all need you. Everyone in the village needs you.”


	10. A Huge Relief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch wakes up from his feverish nightmare.

Branch continued to have one feverish nightmare after another, well through the day, and into the night. Poppy remained by his side and helped keep him cool. She ended up sleeping for a little while. She was exhausted.

The next morning, Branch woke up. His fever had broken. He cracked his eyes open and glanced up at Poppy. His vision was blurred and distorted. He thought at first, he was looking at a two-year-old Poppy, just like he had when he was five. As his vision came to focus, he saw he was back with reality. He smiled softly and touched her cheek. “There is my queen.”

“Branch!” Poppy hugged into him gently and started to cry happy tears. She was so relieved.

“How long was I out?” Branch moved his arm to look at the bandage that was wrapped around the spider bite. He was glad he was found, because that could have been deadly.

“About twenty-four hours.” Poppy shifted little Jazz and showed him to his daddy. “He didn’t wait for you.”

Branch widened his eyes and looked at their newborn son. “Oh my god Poppy, I am so sorry.” He smiled softly and put his hand on Jazz’s little arm. “He is adorable. Has he been named? Did the birth go smoothly?”

“I named him Jazz, as we had agreed on. Lily was the only one present when he was born.” Poppy smiled softly. “But there were thankfully there were no complications.”

“No one had gone to check on you?” Branch frowned and sat up. “And Lily was alone?”

“Jazz came faster than I was expecting, and no one heard me scream for help. Lily had run all the way home, alone.” Poppy widened her eyes. “Wait a minute! She knew exactly what was going on with you and I! How in the world?!”

“Told you she is gifted.” Branch smiled softly and put his hand on her hand. “Where are the twins?”

“They are with Guy Diamond. Smidge just checked in with me an hour ago, and said Lily had a rough night.” Poppy sighed softly. “We owe them big time.”

“We will babysit their three when I am feeling a little better. Sorry I was not with you when you had Jazz.” Branch laid on his side and admired their son. He was a proud daddy.

“It isn’t your fault. We are going to need to be careful with those spiders. I don’t want anyone else getting bitten.” Poppy sat Jazz down by Branch. 

“I’m going to make sure all of them within the area are killed. We can’t risk the kids.” Branch held Jazz and cooed at him.

“Sounds like a good plan Branch.” Poppy sighed softly. It was a huge relief that Branch had made it.

Back at Smidge and Guy Diamond’s, River was watching Lily. Lily’s aura was flaring between blue, green, and red. She didn’t understand why it was so colorful. She moved closer and sat by her. “Are you ok?”

“I’m sad and scared.” Lily hugged into River. She was also a little mad that she couldn’t be with her parents. She was worried about her daddy.

“Why are you sad and scared?” River watched her aura curiously. She was trying to figure these auras out and the easiest trolls to check out where her friends and family.

“Daddy is sick.” Lily sniffled and rubbed her eyes. She was very tired and needed a nap.

“Maybe we can go see him?” River grabbed her hand and headed for the door.

“We will be in trouble.” Lily walked with her and widened her eyes. She didn’t want to get in trouble.

“Need to make sure he is better.” River opened the door and walked out. She headed towards the royal flower pod.

Lily looked around as they walked. She had a bad feeling they were going to get in trouble. When she realized they were heading the wrong way, she had River stop. “This way.” She headed towards the medical pod.

River looked confused but followed Lily.

River and Lily soon arrived into the medical pod. They went in and walked over to Branch’s bed. Lily climbed into the bed with him and hugged him tight.

Poppy noticed the girls and frowned. “Did you two just walk here alone?!”

“Yes…” River saw a flare of red from Poppy. She hid behind the bed and frowned.

Lily looked up and nodded. “Yeah, we came alone.” She looked at River. “See? We are in trouble.”

Branch hugged into Lily and sat up. “You two are too young to walk around alone. Don’t do it again.” He wanted them to be older before they did that. He was protective.

“Sorry…” River watched Branch. His aura also flared red, but quickly turned to brown. She cocked her head. She hadn’t seen that color before.

“OK daddy, I am sorry.” Lily snuggled into him and almost instantly fell asleep. She was glad that her daddy was OK.


	11. A Very Happy Birthday

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s Smidge’s birthday, and Branch and Poppy have a special plan to make her feel better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No underage reading for this chapter! You have been warned!

A month went by, and Branch made a full recovery from his spider bite. It was Smidge’s birthday. Branch and Poppy were preparing for her birthday party, at their home. They had made plans so that DJ Suki and Fuzzbert would babysit the kids so that they could party without having to worry about the kids.

“I think I know a good birthday present for Smidge.” Poppy said as she decorated their home. She had a big grin on her face.

“I hope it doesn’t involve a bunch of glitter.” Branch made a face of disgust. He wasn’t a fan of getting glitter in his eyes or up his nose.

“It might.” Poppy giggled and walked over to him. She smirked and hugged him. “I want to give her a baby.”

“She can’t have Jazz.” Branch crossed his arms and gave her a stern look. He wasn’t going to let his little son go.

“I wasn’t talking about him.” Poppy punched his arm halfheartedly. She wasn’t going to let little Jazz go either.

“Then what did you have in mind?” Branch raised a brow and glared at her. He didn’t look so sure about this.

“Well, Guy Diamond could have a baby for them instead…” Poppy smirked at him and gave him puppy dog eyes.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” Branch raised his brow. He had a bad feeling she had hatched a plan and didn’t sleep on it, again.

“Well, you two have been in bed together before. Perhaps, you can help them out?” Poppy gave him a cute smile. She was hopeful that playing all cute and excited would work.

“Oh no no no no, I don’t think so. I would have to be very drunk to do anything like that.” Branch shook his head and backed away from her. He wasn’t so sure about this at all. “And Smidge might kill me!”

“Mmm, getting drunk can be arranged.” Poppy smirked and walked towards him with a devilish smirk on her face. “Smidge won’t kill you. She wants a baby.”

Branch backed into the wall and looked at her with wide eyes. She was looking so cute. He bit his bottom lip and cringed at the thought, but he would do it for her and for their friends. “Fine, I will help them, but only because I know they have been trying so hard. Better got get the wine and cider.” Branch scooted away and moved towards the door. He was flushed red as he made his way towards his bunker.

A short time later, Guy Diamond and Smidge arrived. They settled down with a glass of wine at the table.

Branch was leaning against the wall. He had already had two glasses of wine. He couldn’t make eye contact with Guy Diamond, Smidge, or Poppy. He was very nervous.

Smidge looked over at Branch, and then at Poppy. “Is he alright?” She whispered. It was unusual for Branch to not get involved when they got together for a party.

“He’s just nervous.” Poppy grinned and smiled at them. “I have a great idea that can help you and Guy Diamond. I know how much you two want to have a baby.”

Guy Diamond felt his heart sink a little. It was not easy to talk about this anymore. “Yeah, we do want a baby.” He swallowed hard and looked at Smidge.

Smidge’s eyes went wide, and she scooted closer to Poppy. “What did you have in mind?”

“Well, I talked to Branch this morning, and if you are both in agreement, he is willing to help Guy Diamond conceive.” Poppy smiled wide. She was really hoping they would agree. She wanted them to be happy.

Guy Diamond’s eyes went wide, and he began to choke on wine. He looked over at Branch. “You agreed to this?!”

“Yeah, I agreed to it.” Branch murmured and took another large swallow of wine.

Smidge grinned and got up. She walked over to Branch and smiled up at him. “You are a saint.” She grabbed his hand and walked him over to the table. “I accept.”

“Smidge!” Guy Diamond flushed and looked at his wife. He wasn’t as sure about this. They were talking about him having sex with his best friend. He felt that that was awkward.

Poppy grinned and looked between them. “Guy, are you in agreement too?” She was squirming with excitement.

Guy Diamond groaned and looked at his wine glass. He thought for a moment and then nodded. “Yeah, I will do it.” He groaned internally. He was willing to do it to make Smidge happy.

Smidge cheered with joy and took a big swig of wine. She was so excited. She had been wanting a baby so bad, and this was going to help them out considerably.

Several glasses of wine later, Smidge looked between the three of them. She had a smug look on her face. “You three are awesome.”

“We all love you Smidge. Your happiness is important to us.” Poppy smiled at her. She was just as drunk as they were. She stood up, and started getting ready to leave so that they could have private time.

Branch grabbed her hand and smirked. “Oh no, you are not leaving. If I am doing this, so are you.”

Poppy blinked a few times and then began to giggle like mad. She booped him on the nose and grinned. “You’re funny.”

Guy Diamond chuckled and picked up Smidge. He gave her a sloppy kiss and ran his hands through her hair.

Branch grinned and kissed Poppy. “I’m serious.” His voice was slurred. He picked her up and walked towards the bedroom.

Poppy hugged into him and looked up at him. She had a cheeky grin on her face. She was OK with this. It only increased the chances of having a baby if all four of them were involved.

Guy Diamond broke his kiss with Smidge and followed Branch towards the bedroom. He had Smidge in his arms. He set the birthday girl down and pinned her down. He wanted a round with her first to get in the mood.

Smidge giggled as he pulled her clothes off. She squirmed and ran her foot down his belly. “No fair, I want to dominate this time.” She quickly gave up, feeling too drunk to resist his firm hold.

Poppy stumbled towards them and helped Guy Diamond pull her clothes off. She felt warmth at the base of her lower abdomen. She reached down and ran her hand down Smidge’s cheek. 

Branch saw this and positioned himself behind Guy Diamond. He pulled off his pants and threw them to the corner. His shirt also came off, and was throw at the lamp shade, landing on top of it and dimming the room slight. He grabbed Guy Diamond’s hips and gave his butt cheeks a good slap, before grabbing his length and entering Guy Diamond from behind. He grabbed Guy’s hair and began pounding him. He wasn’t waiting.

Guy Diamond stumbled forward a little and lost grip of Smidge. He regained his position and pulled Smidge close. He pulled his length out and entered her. He began thrusting into her and moaned her name.

Smidge gasped and grabbed onto the bed’s edge. She could feel the motion of both boys as Guy Diamond thrust into her. She felt her walls tighten and let out a moan.

Poppy got up and began to kiss Branch as he thrust into Guy. She found this very arousing and wanted in on the action.

Branch reached down and began to finger Poppy as he continued to thrust. His cheeks were flushed, and he was pleased. It had been about ten years since he had mated with Guy, and he was starting to remember why they had enjoyed it. The grind and slight burn from Guy Diamond’s glitter felt so good along his flesh. 

Guy Diamond shivered and kissed Smidge along her ear and neck. He was extremely please and loved the double sensations he was feeling. He ran his tongue along her chest and murmured that he loved her so much.

Poppy grasped on her knees, feeling pleased by the tender touch of Branch’s fingers along her tender vulva. She moaned his name and shivered.

When Branch was done, he pulled out and turned to kiss Poppy. He whispered how much he loved her.

Guy Diamond finished as well, and turned, grabbing Branch. He pulled him close and pushed his length into him.

Branch gasped, not expecting to take part in this love affair in this way. He fell to his knees and growled playfully. “Oh, we are going rough, now are we?’ He backed into Guy Diamond and smirked. He bumped hips with Guy Diamond rough. They were shaking the bed.  
Smidge giggled and moved over out of their way. She mused and watched them, feeling very fuzzy and warm.

Poppy shivered, watching them play rough. She grabbed Branch’s face and kissed him. “Mmm…tease.” She was wanting part of the action.

Branch pulled her under him and filled her with his length. He was happy to help her. He began thrusting eagerly.

Smidge flushed and moved closer. She played with herself as she kissed Guy Diamond.

The four took turns mating with each other. They did this through the night, and into the early morning. Their neighbors were not amused and super confused.


	12. Confusing Auras

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> River tries to make sense of the auras around her.

As the afternoon came to Troll Village, Poppy finally came out of the flower pod. She made her way towards DJ Suki and Fuzzbert’s flower pod. She felt bad for having the kids over there that long, but she had over slept. She had a pounding headache and was hung over. She knocked on the door and waited for an answer.

DJ Suki answered the door and crossed her arms. She raised her brow. “You are really late.” She wasn’t amused. “I had trouble keeping Jazz happy. He wasn’t exactly into nursing off me and Berry wouldn’t leave him alone, which made him madder.”

“I know DJ, I am sorry. I can babysit Berry for you.” Poppy walked over to Jazz and picked him up. She let him nurse right away. He was very hungry and didn’t like that another mama had tried to feed him.

DJ Suki’s nine-month-old daughter, Berry, crawled over and started playing with Poppy’s feet. She really liked when Poppy came over. The little raspberry colored trolling looked up at her and smiled. Her bright green hair was messy from rolling around the house. She was a very active baby.

DJ Suki sighed and picked up Berry. “It’s fine. When you didn’t come back last night, I started feeding him the bottle instead, but he has been fussy.” She watched Poppy and smiled softly. “You look hung over. No wonder you didn’t come back.”

“Yeah, I didn’t mean to drink that much.” Poppy sighed and looked around. “Where are all the kids?”

“Fuzzbert took them for a walk. They were getting restless.” DJ Suki looked outside. “Knowing him, he took them to the concert mushroom and tought them how to play the Kazoo.”

Poppy shifted Jazz and began to burp him. “I really appreciate you taking care of the kids for us.”

Fuzzbert soon came back with the kids and put away his Kazoo.

River ran over to Poppy and looked up at her. She cocked her head. Her aura looked confusing. It was a mix of light blue, dark green, and light yellow. She was still trying to figure out what it meant when there were lots of colors.

“Come on kiddos. Let’s go home.” Poppy thanked DJ Suki and Fuzzbert, and then headed out the door and towards the royal flower pod.

Back at the royal flower pod, Branch was taking a shower. Last night didn’t exactly go as planned, and his head was pounding. He was trying to go over what he could remembered. He was worried that they had went too far.

Smidge was at the kitchen table. She had her hand on her head. She was trying to wrap her head around what happened too. The more she thought about it, the more her head hurt.

Guy Diamond was sprawled out on the couch. He was very sore, and his head hurt. Of the four, he had enjoyed the night before the most.

Poppy came in with the little ones. She sat down by Guy Diamond and put her hand on her head. Her head was still pounding.

River walked over and hugged her daddy. His aura was yellow, with a slight hint of green. She smiled at him. “I love you daddy.” She let him go and walked over to Smidge. She looked up and frowned, seeing dark green, with a little bit of red, and some blue on her aura tones. The dark green had her squirming a bit. Dark never was good. She backed away and headed for Lily’s room. She decided she wanted to play instead.

Branch finished in the bathroom and came out. He smiled as Lotus clung to his leg and hugged him. “Did you have fun at auntie DJ’s?”

Lotus nodded and smiled up at his daddy. “Yeah, I got to learn the Kazoo!”

River saw them and looked at Branch’s aura. It had a lot of confusing colors, and almost looked like a rainbow. She moved closer and looked up at him with wide eyes. She wasn’t sure what to make of all those colors.

“Are you feeling ok River?” Branch picked her up and checked her forehead. She didn’t appear to have a fever.

River looked up at him, and then suddenly puked all over him. She had become overwhelmed by his aura and spiritual presence. She couldn’t handle it.

Branch groaned and walked her to the bathroom. He gave her a trashcan to puke in.

River groaned and heaved up the rest of her stomach contents. She burst into tears and began to cry.

Smidge heard the crying and went over to investigate. She frowned and rubbed River’s back. “What’s wrong sweetheart?”

Branch took off his soiled clothes and went to go clean up.

“I don’t feel good.” River leaned into her mama and hugged into her.

“We will go home. Time for a nap.” Smidge picked her up and headed for the door. “I’m going home. Come on Daisy and Emery. Coming dear?” She smiled at Guy Diamond.

“Coming dear.” Guy Diamond got up and followed Smidge and the kids out the door.

“Have a good night.” Poppy watched them go and then headed for the bedroom. She needed to lay down. She crawled in with Jazz and sprawled out. She needed a nap.

Branch cleaned up and then joined Poppy in bed. He was quiet. He wasn’t sure how to express his emotions right now, but they were definitely extremely mixed.


	13. Broken Friendship

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tensions build between Poppy and Smidge.

A couple of days later, Smidge was making breakfast for the kids. She hadn’t talked to Guy Diamond since they had come home. She was giving him the silent treatment. She had been fuming. It had never been planned for all four of them to be involved. She was cranky and jealous.

Guy Diamond was taking care of River. The poor girl seemed sick. He made her comfy in bed and sat beside her to read. He knew Smidge was mad, but there was nothing they could do to take back what they had done. He could only hope that she wouldn’t hold a grudge. They had all done this for her.

River’s sensitivity to auras and spiritual presence was really getting to her the last couple of days. She couldn’t handle it and was having trouble keeping food down. She looked at her daddy as he read to her. He still expressed light yellow aura with a slight hue of green. She was starting to think that meant that he was happy and full of love. Light green seemed to be of an expression of love.

Things were a little different in the royal flower pod. Poppy was sad more than anything. She still couldn’t believe she had let things go as far as they went. She was also worried. She couldn’t read Branch, and normally she could understand him. He wasn’t acting normal for him, and it bothered her a lot. She hadn’t seen Smidge either, and that was very unusual. She was worried that her best friend was mad at her.

Branch was oddly very cheery. He still had a hard time comprehending what all happened but was trying to stay positive. He hummed as he cleaned around the house. He could tell that Poppy was sad and was trying hard to help her relax. It seemed the more he tried, the sadder she got. He didn’t understand. When he was done dusting, he walked over and hugged into her. “Poppy, something is really bothering you. Talk to me?”

“You been acting weird, and I am worried that Smidge is mad at me.” Poppy hugged into him. “I think I made a mistake.”

“No, you didn’t make a mistake. We tried to make a baby, and all four of us now have a chance of having one for Smidge and Guy Diamond. Smidge shouldn’t be mad. If anything, she should be excited.” Branch smiled softly. “And I didn’t mean to make you worry. I was trying to cheer you up.”

“It wasn’t working. You are my silly goof.” Poppy snuggled into him and smiled softly. “I feel a little better now. Thank you.” She kissed him and ran her hand through his hair.

“Just know I won’t do that again.” Branch smiled softly and kissed her back. He growled playfully. “Don’t get it on with me. We have a lot of work to do today.”

Poppy smirked and gave him a tiny boop on the nose. “Alright, I will go get the kids ready for school then.” She smiled at him and then went to get Lily and Lotus ready for school. When they were ready, she walked them to school.

Branch stayed home with Jazz. He stood over his son and grinned. “So little one, it’s just you, me, and an empty house. What sort of trouble shall we get into until mama comes home?”

Jazz looked up at his daddy and cooed. He loved his daddy.

Smidge walked Daisy and Emery towards the school. River had stayed home to rest since she was still sick. When she arrived and saw Poppy, she looked away from Poppy and crossed her arms. She was in no mood for her right now.

When the kids went with their teacher, Poppy turned to Smidge and walked over to her. “Are you alright?”

Smidge backed away from Poppy and put her hand up to try and stop her. “Don’t touch me.” She turned her back to her and grumbled. “I only agreed that Branch would mate with Guy Diamond. I didn’t agree to a foursome.”

Poppy felt her heart sink. She frowned and lowered her head. “Smidge, I didn’t mean for it to go as far as it did. I am sorry.”

Smidge sighed and started walking towards her flower pod. She was cranky.

“Smidge? Please, I didn’t mean to upset you.” Poppy followed her.

“Well it does upset me!” Smidge stopped and clenched her fists. She felt very insecure. Guy Diamond seemed way too happy about the whole situation, and she didn’t like that he had seemed to enjoy that whole thing. He was her mate. She didn’t want to share.

Poppy reached over and put her hand on Smidge’s shoulder. “I really am sorry Smidge.” She went to hug Smidge, but Smidge pushed away from her. Poppy sat down and put her face into her hands. She shook her head and started to silently cry. She was scared she was going to lose her friend.

Smidge grumbled and walked into her flower pod. She turned and slammed the door.

Guy Diamond stood up when she slammed the door. He walked out of River’s room and saw Smidge by the door. He walked over, frowning. “What’s wrong Smidge?”

“You know what is wrong.” Smidge huffed and walked towards the bathroom. She looked pissed.

“I do?” Guy Diamond followed her and frowned when she slammed the door in his face. “Are you mad at me?”

“Leave me alone.” Smidge started to make a bath. She didn’t want to fight. River was home and she didn’t want to yell at Guy Diamond in front of the kids.

“Is this about the other day?” Guy Diamond went to open the door, but it was locked.

“You think?” Smidge grumbled and took off her clothes. She slipped into the bathtub and grumbled.

“I thought you wanted this?” Guy Diamond sat down and leaned on the door. He didn’t like seeing her mad.

Smidge began washing her hair. She heard him and started to think. He was right. Poppy was doing this for her. She felt her heart sink as she realized just how mean she just was to Poppy. She frowned and quickly finished her bath.

“I love you Smidge.” Guy Diamond was worried about her silence. When the door opened, he turned and smiled when Smidge came out and hugged him.

“I love you too Guy. I am sorry. You are right.” Smidge went to the bedroom and began getting dressed. She brushed her long hair and put a bow at the tip. “I need to go talk to her.” She finished getting ready and headed out.

Poppy was still in the same spot, but had blended in. She didn’t want anyone to see her cry.

Smidge came up and sat down by Poppy. “Poppy, I am sorry. I just talked to Guy, and he is right. You did this for me, and I was a jerk.”

Poppy resided her hair and pulled Smidge into a hug. “We all did this for you Smidge. We just want you happy again. We love seeing you happy.”

Smidge hugged into Poppy and smiled softly. “I realize that now. I am sorry for getting mad.” She sighed softly and looked up at Poppy. She was happy to have great friends.


	14. Embarrassing A Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch, Biggie and Cherry go with the kids on a little field trip.

About another month and a half went by, and things seemed to be back to normal. The teacher had arranged for the kids to go on a field trip to the mountain clear water stream. Branch insisted that he go. He was protective of his kids and wanted to make sure they stayed safe. Cherry also wanted to go, knowing that Blossom might struggle climbing up the mountain. Of course, Biggie insisted on going too, since Cherry was roughly a month and a half away from her due date and looking quite round in the belly. He wasn’t risking his little family.

Biggie was carrying Blossom and was telling her about all the different berries and fruits that the passed by. He loved having time with his little princess.

As they walked along the path, Cherry caught up to Branch and walked beside him. She smiled at him. “You are extra quiet today.”

“Yeah? So?” Branch glanced at her but kept focused on the area around them. He didn’t feel very good today but wanted to make sure the kids were safe. He wasn’t exactly thrilled about this trip.

“So, what is going on with you? I thought you liked being a part of the teaching experience?” Cherry looked him over and noticed he was a little pale. “Are you sick?”

“I’m fine Cherry.” Branch sighed and watched the kids. They were his primary focus. He didn’t want them to get hurt. As they passed a patch of daisies, Branch felt a wash of nausea. He hated the smell of daisies. He ran over to a batch of grass and puked behind one of the blades.

Cherry followed him and pat his back gently. “You don’t seem fine to me.”

Branch finished and rubbed his mouth clean. He turned and ran to catch up with the group. “I said I am fine Cherry. Drop it.”

“You just puked.” Cherry followed him, so she didn’t fall behind too. “I’m not going to drop it and you know it.”

“Cherry leave me alone. I need to keep an eye on the kids and you are distracting me.” Branch grumbled about how stubborn she was.

“I can talk to you while you watch them. Tell me what is going on? You are avoiding me.” Cherry was suspicious. There had been rumors that something happened with him and Guy Diamond. She wasn’t sure if that was true or not.

“Err, fine! But don’t go telling everyone, ok? I’m helping Guy Diamond and Smidge have a baby. I’m with pod.” Branch felt his cheeks flush. He didn’t want the whole village to know.

“I knew you couldn’t keep your pants on!” Cherry smirked and began to giggle.

“Shh! Darn you Cherry you are too loud!” Branch crossed his arms and walked a little faster. He was not amused.

“So, who knows about this?” Cherry mused as she kept up with him. She had a huge grin on her face.

“This is between Guy, Smidge, Poppy, and I. I want to keep it that way, so hush.” Branch grumbled. He was red in the cheeks and didn’t want to talk about this.

Cherry’s eyes widened. “You all did it?!” She laughed so hard that she had to hold her swollen stomach from discomfort.

“Cherry!!!” Branch groaned as the whole group walked towards them, wondering what was so funny. “Shhh!!!” He put his hand over his face. The secret was going to spread now. He wished he had kept his mouth shut. “You are so embarrassing…”


	15. A Worried Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One of the families has a big scare, and it puts everyone on edge.

A couple more weeks had gone by, and Poppy, Guy Diamond, and Smidge also found out they were expecting. The results of their one-night stand in order to give Smidge a baby had worked far better than they were expecting. They didn’t think they would all get pregnant.

Concerned about Smidge’s unborn baby, Guy Diamond insisted she do as little as possible. He was very worried about her. He was happy that they were going to have babies, but he didn’t want her hurting again.

During the night, Smidge woke up feeling cramping in her belly. She squeezed her eyes shut and began to cry. She could feel blood pool around her. She was scared that she was having a miscarriage.

Guy Diamond startled awake and looked over at her. He got up and checked her. He frowned seeing blood. Concerned, he picked her up and ran towards the medical pod.

“Not again.” Smidge cried into his shoulder. She was shaking.

As Guy Diamond arrived, medical trolls grabbed Smidge and set her down in the bed. They checked her over and saw that she hadn’t lost the pregnancy, but she was bleeding heavily. They shoved Guy Diamond out of the room and began working on Smidge.

Guy Diamond was crying as he paced in front of the door. He had Smidge’s blood on his skin. He was very scared. It took a few minutes before he realized he had left the kids alone at their flower pod. He headed back to get them. He went into the house and woke the kids up. He had them get dress and then went to clean up.

Once the kids were all ready to go, Guy Diamond made his way to Branch and Poppy’s. His skin tone was gray, and he still had tears running down his cheeks. He got to the door and knocked.

River watched her daddy and frowned. His aura was dark blue with extreme sadness. She teared up, sad that her daddy was sad.

Branch answered the door and frowned, seeing that Guy Diamond was crying. His heart sank. “Come in kids…” He motioned them inside.

“She is at the medical pod. They didn’t let me stay this time. She was bleeding badly.” Guy Diamond broke down and began to sob. “What if I lose her?”

Branch frowned and pulled Guy Diamond into a hug. “Shh, don’t think like that. She is a very tough troll. She will make it.” He was sad for them and concerned. This stress wasn’t good for Guy Diamond or his unborn pod.

Guy Diamond hugged into him tight. He was extremely upset.

Poppy came out and hurried over. She saw how upset Guy Diamond was and felt her own heart sink. She joined in the hug and rubbed Guy Diamond’s back. “It’s going to be ok. We are all here for you.”

“Come in and sit down. We will go check on her in a little bit. You need to take a few deep breaths.” Branch lead him to their couch and had him sit down. He walked to the kitchen to make some coffee.

Guy Diamond settled on the couch and cupped his face into his hands. He cried inconsolable.

Lily came out of the bedroom. She was shaking. She clung to Poppy and began to cry. She didn’t understand why she sensed intense pain from Smidge and sadness from Guy Diamond.

Poppy picked Lily up and held her close. “Shh, it’s going to be ok sweetheart.”

A few hours later, there was a knock on the door. Branch answered it. It was one of the medical trolls. She explained what was going on with Smidge, before leaving to go home from her shift.

Branch turned to Guy Diamond and walked over to him. He took his hand and smiled softly. “Smidge had surgery. They were able to save her pod, but she is going to have to stay in bed until they are born. They said she had scar tissue from the stab wound over five years ago.”

Guy Diamond looked relieved and hugged into Branch. This was way better news then he was expecting. He released the hug and realized what Branch said. “What do they mean they?” He looked puzzled.

“Smidge is expecting twins. They were able to save them both.” Branch smiled at Guy Diamond. He was relieved.

Guy Diamond’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fainted. He wasn’t expecting that at all.

Branch let him ease into the couch. He covered him with a blanket and then turned and hugged into Poppy. “Thank goodness. I was so worried.”

“So was I Branch…” Poppy hugged into him and let out a huge sigh of relief. She didn’t want anything to happen to Smidge.


	16. A Sweet Angel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smidge doesn’t take bed rest well. She has a short chance to bond with Cherry as well.

Four more weeks went by, and Smidge had been too sore to move up to this point. She had had pretty major surgery to remove scar tissue and fix her pod so that the twins could grow. Now that she felt better, she wanted to help Guy Diamond around the house, but he didn’t let her. She was very bored.

Smidge got out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She looked around. She wanted to clean it. There was glitter collecting in the corners. She walked towards the kitchen to grab the broom.

Guy Diamond saw her and walked over. He shook his head and grabbed the broom. “Nope, not going to happen. What are you doing out of bed?”

“I’m bored.” Smidge crossed her arms and looked up at him. She was not amused.

“Bored or not, you need to be in bed until the twins are born. Doctor’s orders.” Guy Diamond picked her up and carried her towards the bed.

“You shouldn’t be carrying me.” Smidge glared up at him. She didn’t like this one bit. She wanted to clean house and help Guy Diamond with the kids.

“I’m fine Smidge. We need you safe and we need to listen to the doctor.” Guy Diamond sat beside her and ran his fingers through her hair. “It will only be for another few months. When the twins are born you will be able to help out all you want.”

Smidge rolled on her side and grumbled.

Biggie knocked on the door. Cherry was with him. They were there to check on Smidge and Biggie wanted to see if Guy Diamond needed help with anything.

Guy Diamond got up and headed for the door. He answered it and let them in. “Hello Biggie, hello Cherry. Smidge is in the bedroom. She would love company.”

“I came to see if you need anything today. You should be resting.” Biggie smiled at him. He looked around for something to do.

“I’m fine. You two should be getting ready for a baby. Isn’t Cherry due soon?” Guy Diamond chuckled.

“I am, and we are ready. I am trying to walk this baby out, but he or she is in no hurry to come.” Cherry smiled softly and headed for the bedroom to check on Smidge.

Biggie started cleaning their kitchen. He was very nervous about the baby and was trying hard to distract himself.

“Alright, if you insist.” Guy Diamond smiled softly and went to lay down on the couch. He was tired.

Cherry poked her head in the bedroom and smiled softly, seeing Smidge playing with her dress. She walked in and sat at the edge of the bed. “You look bored.”

“I am very bored.” Smidge looked up at Cherry and sighed. She saw that she was very round. “You look ready to go. What are you doing out, instead of resting?”

“I thought the walk might help the baby come. Biggie was also restless, so I figured we could come over here and help out, so Guy Diamond could rest.” Cherry smiled softly.

“If I have to rest, so do you.” Smidge smirked and pat the other side of the bed. “Besides, I want company.”

“Fair enough.” Cherry laid down beside Smidge and looked over at her. “So, I heard you are having twins. Are they sure it isn’t triplets?” She could see that Smidge was already showing.

“They were sure it is twins.” Smidge smiled softly. “I know I look big already. It scares me a little.”

Little foot steps came running into the room. River and Blossom had come in from school. Branch had walked them home and had seen Cherry and Biggie come here. River helped Blossom onto the bed, and the climbed up too. She sat down by Smidge and snuggled into her. “I got a sticker today mama!”

“Me too!” Blossom showed the sticker, which was stuck to her yellow dress. She had a big grin on her face.

“Good job River. Did you have a good day?” Smidge ran her finger over River’s sticker. She was happy that River was doing so well in school.

Cherry hugged Blossom and ran her hand over her hair. “You make me proud princess.” She put her hand over her belly, feeling it tighten a bit. “Let’s go get daddy. Mama is ready to go home.” She picked her up and headed for the door.

“Have a good day Cherry.” Smidge watched her leave.

Cherry walked over to Biggie and tugged on his vest. She gave Blossom to him and then headed out the door quietly.

Biggie looked over at Guy Diamond, and then watched Cherry go out the door. He sighed, feeling bad for leaving suddenly since Guy had fallen asleep. He didn’t want to wake him to tell him they were going, but he had to go. He set the washcloth aside and followed Cherry out the door.

“Is mama ok?” Blossom looked confused. She could see that Cherry was uncomfortable. She didn’t understand.

“Your little brother or sister might be coming sweetheart.” Biggie caught up with Cherry and grabbed her hand. He walked with her home.

Cherry squeezed his hand when another contraction came. She stopped and hugged into him. She was nervous.

Biggie held her and rubbed her back gently. “Almost there mama. Should we find a babysitter?”

“No, Blossom can be home with us.” Cherry let him go and continued towards the flower pod. Once home, she ran the bathtub. She wanted a bath before the baby came so she could relax a little. She remembered labor being horrible when Blossom came. When the water was done, she sat down in the water and winced during another contraction.

Biggie began getting the bed ready for her. He looked very nervous and was tempted to call for help. This was their first biological child, and he feared complications. He was a big troll and was worried that the baby might be too big for her.

Blossom walked into the bathroom and stood by the tub. She looked at her mama. She could see she was in pain and didn’t like it.

“I’m ok baby. Don’t look so sad. This is a good pain.” Cherry took Blossom’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Blossom nodded and took off her dress. She climbed into the tub with her mama. She loved bath time and thought snuggles would make her mama feel better.

“Oh no, we are not bathing together baby. I know you like bath time, but not right now.” Cherry picked her up and put her out of the tub.

Biggie came in and picked Blossom up. He dried her off and put her dress back on. “You may have a bath after mama is done.”

Blossom sighed and nodded. “OK.” She looked between them and then walked to her room to play. She wasn’t sure what else to do. She had wanted a bath.

Cherry cringed in pain and held the edge of the tub. “Mmm…”

Biggie got to his knees and grabbed her hand, so she could squeeze it. “What can I do to help?”

Cherry squeezed his hand tight and breathed through the contraction. “I might need help out of the tub. It’s not helping.” She waited for it to finish, and then tried to get up. She was unable to.

Biggie helped her up, took her out of the tub, and began drying her off gently.

Cherry bit her bottom lip as he dried her. She was very uncomfortable.

Once she was dried off, he helped her to the bedroom and into the bed. He covered her with a blanket and held her hand. “I love you.”

“I love you too daddy.” Cherry breathed and squeezed his hand. She looked up at him and smiled softly. “At least this time you know I am in labor.”

“Yeah, I recall what happened last time. I still feel bad for that. If I had known you were having a baby, I wouldn’t have let you have Blossom under that mushroom.” Biggie smiled softly. He ran his hand over her hair. He admired her face. She had a scar from her ear to her nose from when she had fallen from the tree years back, but he loved her the way she was, scars and all. He couldn’t wait to meet their precious baby. “You are so beautiful.”

Cherry smiled softly and leaned into him. “Can I snuggle for a little while? This will probably take a little bit…”

“Of course, sweetheart.” Biggie crawled into the bed and spooned her gently.

A couple hours later, Blossom came into the bedroom. She looked up at them and frowned. “I’m hungry.”

Biggie got up and smiled softly. “Be right back love. I’ll get her a snack.” He headed out the door.

“Hurry back.” Cherry grabbed a pillow and cringed. Her contractions were getting closer together.

Biggie got to the kitchen and grabbed a blueberry. She gave it to Blossom and led her towards the bedroom.

Cherry let out a soft cry. She was getting close.

Biggie grabbed a blanket and got ready to catch their baby. When she was delivered, he cleaned her up. “Oh Cherry, she is so beautiful.” He smiled when she started to cry.

Cherry sat up and looked over at him. He had a tiny blue baby girl in his hands. She had baby pink hair like her mama. “She is adorable.” She smiled and reached over, touching their daughter’s arm gently.

Blossom looked up from her snack and set it aside. She walked over and looked up at her daddy. “I wanna see.” She reached up, curious.

Biggie knelt down and let Blossom see her baby sister. “You are a big sister now.”

Cherry watched Blossom and smiled. She was looked relieved that this birth had went a lot smoother. “Biggie, do you want to name her?”

“Hmm, how about Junebug? June for short?” Biggie smiled at her. He was a very proud daddy.

“Junebug sounds like a great name.” Cherry reached over and gently took her daughter. She was a very happy mama.


	17. An Unexpected Guest

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The young trollings make an unexpected discovery.

Another month had passed by since Cherry had little Junebug. It was starting to get warm outside, and the little trollings were spending more time outside. Branch gave them boundaries and let them play outside. He even let Lily carry Jazz around so that Jazz could see the outside world. She loved carrying him around.

Lily had Jazz sitting up. It was something he was still trying to master, but he was getting better at it. At five months old, he was getting pretty rolly polly. He smiled at his sister and cooed at her. He loved his sister. Every was right beside her and helping Jazz stay steady.

Lotus and Daisy were wrestling nearby. Lotus was considerably larger then Daisy, but she often managed to pin him down. She was becoming strong for such a tiny trolling.

River was sitting with Blossom. They were talking about June. Blossom really loved her baby sister and wished she could come out and play with them.

Lily felt an odd sensation and looked towards the direction that she was picking that feeling up from. She stood up and picked up Jazz. “Follow me.” She started heading towards the forest.

Emery walked beside her and looked around. “Is it the funny feeling again?” He knew they were not allowed this way, but he didn’t want to be away from Lily either.

Daisy stopped wrestling with Lotus and took off after Lily. “Wait for me!” Lotus got up, grabbed her hand, and ran with her.

Blossom got up and followed them too. She looked back at River. “Coming?”

River got up and grabbed her hand. She nodded and followed them all. “Where are we going Lily?”

“Shh…” Lily looked around and hugged Jazz closely. She looked at Emery when he put his hand on her shoulder. She smiled and led them towards a patch of weeds. She remembered that some monsters were well hidden. She gave Jazz to Emery and then moved a leaf away. She saw a young gray female troll with turquoise colored eyes, hiding behind the leaf.

The young female looked up and widened her eyes. She wasn’t expecting to see young trollings out here. “Who are you?” She was holding her right arm. It was swollen and appeared broken. Her clothes were torn, and her skin had bruises.

“My name is Lily. You need help. Come with us.” She offered her hand and smiled. She had a good feeling about this troll and wanted her to get help.

The young troll shook her head and stayed where she was. She was very scared.

River looked at the young troll and saw that she had many very dark colors in her emotional auras. She also had an odd spiritual presence. She wasn’t as sure about this. She turned, picked up Blossom, and ran towards Troll Village. “Daddy!!!”

“Oh great, we are in trouble now.” Emery sighed as he watched his sister run home.

“I know. My daddy will understand.” Lily was calm. She knew they were in trouble, but she also knew this young troll needed help. They wouldn’t be in too much trouble. “You need help.” She kept an eye on the young troll. She could sense the intense pain in her arm.

Daisy moved closer and checked the young troll out. She poked her gently. “She is the same color mommy and daddy were when they were very sad.”

The young troll startled at the touch and moved a little from Daisy. “Please don’t touch me.” She was very sore.

Several minutes later, Branch came up to the scene with Cooper and DJ Suki. He saw the young troll and frowned noticing she was injured. “What are you kids doing out this far? You know better.”

“Sorry daddy. She is hurt. I had to come find her.” Lily walked up to him and hung her head in shame, although she knew he wasn’t going to be very mad.

Emery walked up to Branch and offered Jazz to him. He looked guilty.

Lotus hid behind Daisy but was easily seen behind her short stature. Daisy walked over, worried she was in trouble too. Lotus followed her.

Branch sighed and picked up Jazz from Emery. He walked towards the young female. “Come with me please. I can get your arm checked out.”

“I will get in trouble.” She looked away and frowned. She was scared that her mate would find her. He had beaten her and broken her arm.

“I will make sure you are safe.” Branch looked around, wary about the mention of trouble. This young troll was gray and that was not a good sign.

DJ Suki walked over and offered her hand. She smiled at her in a friendly manner. “We are all friendly at our village.”

She hesitated, and then stood up. She looked between them and frowned. She was so nervous.

“What is your name?” Branch began to lead them all back to the village.

“My name is Harmony.” She looked around. She was very jumpy and nervous. 

“Welcome to Troll Village, Harmony.” Branch made his way towards the medical pod. This young female needed medical attention. He was glad his daughter found her. She needed help.


	18. Young Beauty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch and Poppy try to learn more about their newest member Harmony.

Branch settled Harmony at the medical pod, and then made his way home. He had the kids go play again. When he arrived back home, he went to get Poppy. She was singing as she cut up paper scrap for her current scrapbook. He smiled at her and nudged her gently. “Lily found a young troll today. Would you like to go meet her?”

Poppy stood up and smiled. “Of course! Where is she?”

“The medical pod. She is injured.” Branch kissed her cheek and then led her towards the medical pod. “Her name is Harmony.”

“She is hurt?” Poppy frowned and walked with him towards the medical pod.

“Yeah, looks like a broken arm and perhaps more.” Branch got to the medical pod and walked her to the young troll.

Poppy walked in and sat by Harmony. She gave her a friendly smile but was concerned about her gray appearance. “I am Queen Poppy. Welcome to our village. Can you tell me a little about yourself?”

Harmony startled and looked up at Poppy. She glanced around and saw that Branch was back too. She kept looking between them. She wasn’t sure about telling them about herself. Her vision was very poor and all she could see was the shape of their bodies and the colors of their skin and hair. She couldn’t see their facial expressions at all and she lacked any peripheral vision.

A medical troll took Branch aside and told him that the poor girl had a broken arm, a few cracked ribs, and a concussion. Branch looked concerned when he rejoined Poppy. It sounded like this girl had been beaten.

“You don’t need to be shy. We are friendly here.” Poppy smiled and offered her hand to hold.

Harmony watched Poppy and frowned, wincing when Poppy’s hand moved. She wasn’t very sure and was very scared.

“Let’s start with how old you are?” Branch chimed in gently.

“I’m eighteen.” Harmony answered shyly. She kept looking at Poppy. Her bright pink hair and pink skin was easy to make out.

“You are so young.” Poppy looked up at Branch and smiled, before looking at Harmony again. “What is your favorite color?”

“I like bright colors.” Harmony rubbed her sore arm. She hadn’t given favorites much thought since she was a kid.

“Oh! I love bright colors too! What is your favorite music?” Poppy leaned forwards slightly. She was extremely excited and curious.

Harmony shifted a bit in bed. She loved all kinds of music, but she hadn’t sung in years. “I don’t have a preference.”

“Poppy, let’s let her settle for a little bit before we ask anymore questions. She should be resting.” Branch set his hand on her shoulder and smiled at her.

“She can come to our house to recover!” Poppy grinned and kissed Branch. She smirked at him and ignored his disapproving look.

“Our kids are not going to let her rest.” Branch kissed her back and grumbled about how adorable she was. “But I guess she does need a place to sleep until she gets settled.”

Harmony watched them with an awkward expression on her face. She could tell that these two were a couple and heard the mention of kids. “I don’t want to be a burden.”

“You won’t be a burden. Let’s get you to our house.” Poppy helped her up and took her hand. She headed for the door.

Branch walked with Poppy and kept glancing at Harmony. He was trying hard to not admire how beautiful she was. Even with her gray skin, she had the looks of a beautiful troll. He especially loved her turquoise colored eyes.

Harmony looked around and tried hard to keep up with Poppy. She was not use to moving fast, and didn’t tell other trolls that she was nearly blind. She relied a lot on her hearing and what little vision she did have.

“Slow down Poppy, she is sore.” Branch followed them and smiled softly. He was not surprised by her eagerness to take care of this young troll, but he didn’t want Poppy pushing her either.

Poppy slowed down a little bit. She went straight for the royal flower pod. She was already planning on getting help so that Harmony could have a bed to sleep on tonight.

Harmony walked with her, until they crossed paths with a stone and she stumbled forward. She winced, holding back the urge to cry out in pain. Her arm and chest really hurt.

Branch sighed and gently picked Harmony up. He headed for the royal flower pod.

“Branch! You shouldn’t be carrying her…” Poppy watched him carry Harmony towards the flower pod. She was worried about his pod.

“I’m fine.” Branch went inside and set her on the couch. “Are you ok?” He examined her foot and saw that it appeared OK.

Harmony nodded slowly and leaned back into the couch. She was exhausted.

Poppy came over to him and gave him a halfhearted slug on the arm. “You are a brat…”

“I’m fine Poppy.” Branch rubbed his arm and turned to give her a kiss. “Let’s let Harmony rest.” He gave Poppy a devilish grin, hinting that he wanted to do more then kiss. Harmony had turned him on.

Harmony could hear them talking as she slowly began to drift off. She was still scared, but she felt a lot safer here. It was a dream come true for this beautiful young troll.


	19. Leading The Blind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy and Branch discover that Harmony is nearly blind.

Harmony slept on the couch for a long time. It wasn’t until the middle of the night that she finally got up to go to the bathroom. She got up and made her way around the dark flower pod. It took a few minutes, but she found the bathroom. When she was done, she went back to the couch and sat down. She laid down and tried to relax, but she could feel her heart racing. She was in a strange home with trolls she didn’t know. She was very scared.

Lily woke up and walked out of her room. She went over to Harmony and looked at her, curious about her. Her parents had told her to leave Harmony alone, so she stayed quiet.

Harmony heard little footsteps, and then there was complete silence. She glanced around, but the living space was too dark for her to see anything at all. She began to breathe hard. She had a feeling someone was next to her.

“Are you ok?” Lily sensed that Harmony was anxious.

Lily’s sudden voice startled Harmony, and she let out a blood curdling scream. The young trolling had unintentionally scared her.

Branch shot out of bed and came running into the living space. He turned on the light and sighed seeing Lily in front of Harmony. “Lily, go back to bed please.” He led her towards her bedroom.

Poppy came out and looked around. She saw Branch leading Lily into the bedroom. She smiled softly, thinking the little one was probably just checking on their guest. She walked over and smiled at Harmony. “Are you ok? I’m sorry Lily scared you.”

Harmony held her chest. It was very sore. She nodded slowly and glanced around. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry about.” Poppy smiled softly. “I’m going to go back to bed if you are ok?”

Harmony gave a small nod and curled up under the blanket. She was still very tired.

Poppy headed for the bedroom. She met Branch there. They went back to sleep.

Harmony didn’t wake up again until late morning. She woke up and glanced around, before getting up. She looked around and held her broken arm. It was in a sling, because it was too swollen to put in a cast yet. She didn’t hear or see anyone. She walked around to get a better sense of their flower pod now that she was more awake, and it was now daylight.

Poppy was working on her scrapbook when she heard Harmony moving around. She got up and walked towards her. “You are awake! I bet you are starving.” She headed for the kitchen and began making food.

Harmony startled slightly when she suddenly heard Poppy. She watched her move around in the kitchen. She walked over, smelling really good food. “You don’t have to cook for me.”

“Nonsense.” Poppy quickly made a quick breakfast and set it at the table. “Eat up.” She sat down and grinned ear to ear. She was hoping to learn more about Harmony now that she had some rest.

Harmony sat down and began to eat quietly. She kept glancing at Poppy’s blurry pink figure. She was a little uneasy still, but she was still alive, and they hadn’t hurt her yet, which was a good sign. She was still having a hard time relaxing though.

“I have a surprise for you when you are done eating. I hope you are also up for a bath, because I am sure it will make you feel better.” Poppy smiled warmly. 

“I don’t deserve this kindness.” Harmony whispered. “I did nothing to you or your family to deserve this.”

“We take care of each other here. You are hurt and need help. We are happy to provide it.” Poppy got up and headed for the bathroom. She began running a bath.

After Harmony was done eating. She cleaned up and began brushing her hair with her good arm. Her hair was longer then normal and had a slight curl to it at the tip. Even though it was gray, it was obvious that it was three different tones, the darkest being on her right, and getting lighter as it went to her left. When she was all done, she reached over to grab her old torn dress, and found a soft tank top dress there instead. She looked at it and examined it. It was bright orange. She frowned, thinking she had found one of Poppy’s dresses. “Poppy?” She called out.

“Yes?” Poppy was right outside the door. She was excited and could hardly contain herself.

“Where is my dress?” Harmony looked concerned.

“It’s in there. I swiped out your dress for a new one.” Poppy grinned and waited semi-impatiently for her to finish dressing and come out.

“Oh, erm, thank you.” Harmony carefully put the new dress on. She came out of the door and squeaked when she nearly ran into Poppy. She groaned and held her arm. She was so sore.

“It looks great on you! Do you like it?” Poppy was so excited. She had Satin and Chenille make it for Harmony. It had little flowers on it. She really hoped Harmony liked it.

“Yeah, I like it. It’s so soft.” Harmony ran her hand along her dress. “Softest I have ever felt.”

“I figured you would be more comfortable in a soft tank dress.” Poppy grinned. “Want to see my scrapbook collection?”

Harmony nodded slowly, although she wasn’t sure how that was going to work out. She couldn’t read or make out pictures in most books.

Poppy took her hand and led her towards the shelf that had a large collection of scrapbooks. “I document everything we do and plan using pictures mostly and felt.”

Harmony ran her hand across the shelf and nodded. She wasn’t sure what else to do. She didn’t want to upset Poppy. “Beautiful…”

Poppy watched her gaze. She could tell that something wasn’t right. She recalled seeing Harmony move around cautiously and that she touched everything. She pulled out a book and opened it. She was curious about her vision. “See this beetle? This was my pet growing up.”

Harmony looked at the blurry picture and just nodded. She couldn’t make out the details. She was just trying to be nice. She didn’t want anyone mad at her. “It is a nice beetle.”

Poppy frowned. The picture was of a bird. She closed the book and put it away. “How bad is your vision?”

The unexpected question had Harmony’s heart racing. She frowned and looked down. She knew everyone figured it out eventually. She was really scared now. Usually trolls didn’t figure it out this fast. She was often taken advantage for not being able to see well.

“Harmony?” Poppy gently put her hand under her chin and had her look up. “It is ok. I just want to know how bad it is. We can make some changes in the house to make it easier for you if you can’t see.”

Harmony winced at Poppy’s sudden touch. “I can see colors and shapes. It’s very limited too.” She closed her eyes and gulped. “Please don’t be mad…”

“I am not mad.” Poppy gave her a gentle hug. She looked up when Branch came into the flower pod. She gave Harmony a soothing back pat and then walked over to Branch and began to talk to him about Harmony’s morning.

Harmony heard Branch and Poppy talking. She moved closer, feeling a great amount of anxiety. She was worried about how he would react.

When they were done talking, Branch walked over. “Harmony, would you like to join us for the party today? I know you are sore, but I think you may enjoy some music.”

Poppy walked past them and went to get ready for the party.

“A party?” Harmony wasn’t expecting that. She thought for a moment and then nodded. “I would love to listen to music.”

Once they were all ready to go, Branch and Poppy led Harmony towards the party. They liked this girl already and were hoping to get her happy and relaxed sometime soon.


	20. When The Bough Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Climb up the tree does not end well for the trollings.

About five more weeks went by, and Harmony slowly got use to her surroundings. She still didn’t talk about her life before Troll Village and was very shy. Poppy insisted she stay with them for now. She was concerned about letting Harmony live alone. Especially with her healing injuries. She had a bed now, and slept in the same room as Lily, which was very exciting for little Lily. She liked Harmony.

River, Daisy, Emery, Lily, Lotus, and Blossom were climbing the large troll tree today. Blossom was starting to get the hang of doing things a little differently, but she always had River by her side. River helped her up the tree, and then followed her as she walked along the branch.

Lily suddenly stopped where she was on the tree and looked down at the branch they were on. She gasped and started climbing down. “Stop! Get off that branch!”

As Lily started to yell, the branch began to crack. River grabbed Blossom’s hand and started walking her towards the base of the tree. She suddenly looked scared. They were almost to the crack when it broke. Both girls fell into the lake below them and disappeared into the water.

“River! Blossom!” Emery screamed and started climbing down. He ran straight home. He looked terrified.

Lily started to sob as she made her way down. She ran to the edge of the water and wadded in. She was very upset. She looked over to where she saw River and Blossom fall. She didn’t know how to swim yet. She wasn’t a huge fan of water. She could sense their distress and couldn’t do a thing about it.

Daisy watched on with wide eyes. She was frozen in fear. 

Lotus had his jaw gaped open and wasn’t sure what to do.

Emery got home and started sobbing. “Dad! River and Blossom need help now!” He ran back outside and towards the lake.

Guy Diamond got to his feet and followed Emery out the door. “What happened son?”

Smidge heard Emery and was out of bed too. She held her belly and followed them. She heard how upset he was and wasn’t going to stay in bed and wait.

“They fell into the lake!” Emery got to the lake and wadded over to Lily. He took her hand and led her out. He didn’t want her to go any further and disappear too.

Guy Diamond gasped and went right into the lake. He started looking for the two trollings.

Smidge heard that and screamed. She called out for help as loud as she could. “Oh my god no!” She watched Guy Diamond go in and began to sob. She was terrified.

Cherry heard the scream. She ran that way. She arrived and frowned, seeing Smidge out of bed. “What happened?!”

Branch came up to the scene as well as Biggie, Satin, Chenille, and DJ Suki.

“River and Blossom are drowning!” Smidge was shaking.

Guy Diamond came up and coughed up some water. He had Blossom. He swam to the edge of the lake. “River is still in there!” He turned and went to go back in but was stopped by DJ Suki. She went in instead and searched for her.

Satin and Chenille led the kids away. They didn’t need to watch this.

Cherry ran over and picked up Blossom. She set her down and began trying to revive her. She looked terrified and was sobbing.

Biggie hurried over and helped Cherry. He looked extremely upset, but some relief came as Blossom began coughing up water.

Smidge went over to Guy Diamond and hugged into him. She sobbed inconsolably. They held each other, hoping that by some miracle that their little girl would make it.

DJ Suki came up and swam towards the shore with River. She set her down at the shore and began working on her. “Come on River, cough it up.”

Branch walked over to Cherry and Biggie. He told them to rush Blossom to the medical pod. He then walked over to DJ Suki and looked down at little River. He was worried that she was found too late. He turned to Guy Diamond and Smidge. He walked over and began to comfort them.

DJ Suki was about to give up, when River began coughing up water. She picked the little one up and ran towards the medical pod. “She is alive!”

Guy Diamond looked up and saw DJ Suki leave with his daughter. He got up and took Smidge’s hand. They hurried after her.

Branch sighed in relief and followed them. That had been way too close.

Back at the medical pod, medical trolls went to work on Blossom. She had swallowed and breathed in water. They wanted to make sure she coughed it all up to avoid aspiration pneumonia.

When DJ Suki arrived, they took River too and began working on her.

Guy Diamond and Smidge went into the medical pod, but they were told to wait outside. River was not out of the woods yet and they needed to work on her.

Smidge was shaking and buried her face into Guy Diamond. She had both hands on her belly. The entire ordeal had caused her to go into labor. She was very uncomfortable.

Guy Diamond held her and cried. The whole thing had stressed and upset him too. He was also feeling contractions.

Branch saw Smidge holding her belly. He put his hand on her shoulder. “We should get you back in bed.” He was hoping the babies were not coming yet but knew there was a high chance after this close call.

“I’m not leaving.” Smidge shook her head and sniffled. “River almost died. I can’t leave until I know if she is OK or not.”

“I’m not leaving either.” Guy Diamond sat by the door and hugged Smidge to him. He was very upset.

Branch sighed and nodded. “I will be back. I need to tell Poppy what is going on, and check on the kids.” He turned and headed out the door.

A couple hours went by before Biggie came out with Blossom in his arms. Blossom was exhausted but was going to be OK. Cherry walked with him as he headed home.

Guy Diamond and Smidge had quietly waited. They were very nervous and scared.

Smidge was the first to speak up about her contractions. “Guy, I need to go home.” She closed her eyes tight. “I don’t want to have the twins here.”

“You are in labor too?” Guy Diamond frowned and looked at her. He was about to ask her if they could head back too. His heart began to race. “Let’s get going.” He stood and helped her to her feet.

“We should get help if we are both in labor.” Smidge gulped. “And what about River?”

Guy Diamond peeked in and saw that River was in a bed with a couple medical trolls checking her over. She was breathing, which was a relief. He turned to her. “She is in good hands.” He took Smidge’s hand and headed for their flower pod.

“We should get help.” Smidge looked nervous as she walked with him.

Branch was on his way to check on Guy Diamond and Smidge when he saw them heading for their flower pod. He caught up with them. “Daisy and Emery are at our home. Are you two OK? Is River OK?”

“We are in labor.” Guy Diamond helped Smidge into the house. “River is still at the medical pod.”

Smidge stopped at the entrance and leaned on the door frame.

“You both are?” Branch frowned and helped them in. “They are not due for a few weeks.”

“I know.” Guy Diamond helped Smidge towards the bed and laid down with her. He looked worried. He was worried about their pods, and worried about River.

Branch came in and grabbed blankets. “I’ll help. You two shouldn’t be alone.”

“Thank you Branch.” Smidge breathed hard and let out a soft cry.

Guy Diamond reached over and gently rubbed Smidge’s back. He was hurting too, but he hated seeing her in pain.

Branch saw Smidge was already close. He caught the first of the twins as she was born. She was normal sized and caused Smidge to scream when she was born. Branch cleaned her and realized she looked a lot like him, but with lighter blue hair. She was crying lightly. He flushed, not remembering having a round with her. He gave the baby to Guy Diamond and gave him an apologetic look. He turned and got ready for the second twin. When he was born, he cleaned him too. This one looked like Guy Diamond, glitter included, but with light blue green hair.

Smidge hugged into the pillow as her twins were born. She cried from being in a lot of pain.

Branch handed the boy twin to Guy and made sure Smidge was no in danger. She had minor tears but was in no immediate danger.

Guy Diamond held both babies. They were tiny but were crying and very much alive. He looked relieved for a moment before cringing during a contraction.

Smidge looked at the twins, and then gave Branch a very stern glare. She saw the girl and wasn’t amused. “I’m going to kick your ass after I heal!” She crossed her arms and then turned and looked at Guy Diamond. She took the twins, seeing he was in a lot of pain.

Guy Diamond groaned and held his stomach. Branch went over to him and helped him deliver a little boy. He was a glitter blue boy with royal blue hair. This little one wasn’t as lively, and Branch struggled to get him to cry. After a few pats on the back, Branch got the little boy to cry. “There we go.” He gave him to Guy Diamond, and then started backing away. Smidge’s glare kind of scared him. “Congratulations…” He took off before he had to face the wrath of the angry Smidge.

“He’s so busted…” Smidge watched him go, and then turned to Guy Diamond. They had three very tiny babies, but they were all alive. She let a few happy tears roll down her cheeks. “Guy, we need to think of names.” She looked at the first born. “Sapphire for this one?”

Guy Diamond nodded and looked at her son. “How about Topaz for this one? And Jasper for my little boy?”

“Sounds good.” Smidge rested on her back. She was exhausted. It had been a very long and difficult day.


	21. Coffee For The Soul

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch takes a break after a very long day of helping out.

Shortly after helping Smidge and Guy Diamond with their births, Branch made his way down into his bunker. He often came down here to clear his head. It wasn’t always easy for him to help Poppy lead the village, and he often did a lot of things for her. That night with the four of them included. The more he thought, the more he recalled that night. They really did mix up during that night. He silently hoped Poppy’s baby would be his baby, so they didn’t feel obligated to give her baby up. This pregnancy had been rough for Poppy. She had only had a month to recover from having Jazz before she got pregnant again. She also appeared to be attached to this baby which really worried him.

Once he got to the kitchen level, he made a pot of coffee. He loved a good cup of joe and had to drink less of it for the health of his pod. For this very moment though, he really wanted it, and figured the baby would be ok if it was just one pot. He finished making it and stirred in a little bit of sugar. He took the pot to the table and poured it into his ceramic cup. He began drinking it quietly. He needed to think of how he would calm Smidge down. The last thing he wanted was for her to be raging angry at him. At least Guy Diamond had been calm about it.

Branch had drunk the entire pot before dozing off. He was fatigued. As tough as he tried to act, this stubborn and cranky troll needed some down time badly. He hadn’t meant to fall asleep here though.

A few hours passed by before Poppy became very worried. After the spider bite scare, she didn’t like Branch being gone very long. She asked DJ Suki and Fuzzbert to watch the kids. She then took Harmony with her as she made her way towards the bunker. She figured that might be where he went. It was common for him to go there after a long and difficult day.

Harmony held onto Poppy’s arm and glanced around as they made their way towards the bunker. She hadn’t been down there yet. She had heard about it, though. She was very nervous about being out here, but knew Poppy was scared about going out alone. She had heard the story of when Jazz was born quickly and how she had been nearly alone. She understood Poppy’s reasoning behind dragging her along.

Poppy got to the bunker and began pounding on it. “Branch! Branch! Are you in there?!”

Branch was out cold. He was in desperate need of this nap.

Poppy sighed and made her way towards the secret entrance. She was hoping she wouldn’t have to use it. “There is a large step down. I will guide you, but you need to go slow. There are traps below.” She crawled down and then offered her hand for Harmony to hold.

Harmony gulped and carefully climbed down. It was very awkward with her arm cast.

Once both girls were in, Poppy began looking for Branch. She weaved around the traps and kept her distance from them. She didn’t want Harmony accidentally stepping on one, since she probably couldn’t see them in the dark halls of the bunker. They found Branch at the kitchen table. Poppy walked behind him. “Branch!”

“Gah!!!” Branch startled awake and looked around with wide eyes. He had been in the middle of a nightmare when she had yelled his name.

Harmony startled when he screamed and backed up a little bit. That had scared her considerably. She was already very nervous about being down here.

“Are you OK?” Poppy checked his forehead, but found no fever.

“Yeah, sorry dear. I must have fallen asleep.” Branch picked up his pot and mug. He walked to the kitchen area to wash them.

“Did you drink that whole pot?!” Poppy wasn’t amused as she followed him.

“Yeah, I drank it all.” Branch said calmly. He knew by her tone that he was in trouble.

“Coffee isn’t good for your pod!” Poppy grumbled and helped him wash the dishes.

Harmony followed them quietly. She was used to them bickering at each other. They almost seemed like polar opposites some days.

“I know. I won’t have anymore. I just needed it today. I helped Guy Diamond and Smidge with their births. Smidge is mad at me.” Branch dried his pot and cup and put them away.

“They gave birth?! No wonder you have been gone so long.” Poppy sighed and pulled him into a hug. “Smidge is probably in pain and didn’t mean to be mad.”

“One of the babies looks like me but with medium blue hair.” Branch sighed and looked down.

Poppy blinked a few times and then snuggled into him. “So?” She recalled what happened that night. She knew chances were that Smidge might have a Branch baby.

“I just don’t want them mad.” Branch held her and sighed. He glanced at Harmony and broke their hug, feeling a little awkward about their embrace right in front of her. “We should head home.”

Harmony shifted awkwardly. She had no idea what they were talking about. They hadn’t discussed any of the baby related stuff in front of her before.

Poppy gave him a small kiss, and then took his hand. “Let’s go get some rest. You look exhausted.”

Branch kissed her and nodded, before heading for his elevator shaft. They made their way up, and he let them out the door.

Poppy grabbed Harmony’s hand and walked with Branch towards the royal flower pod. Once they were home, they settled down for some supper and got ready for bed.


	22. Crystal Tears

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Poppy and Branch’s due date arrive.

A few more weeks had gone by since Smidge and Guy Diamond gave birth to their three little ones. River had made a full recovery from the drowning accident, but the poor girl avoided the tree and the lake as if they were plagued by some evil creature.

Poppy’s time had come, and this time she had plenty of company. Branch, Harmony, and Smidge were sitting beside her as Guy Diamond entertained the babies nearby. The older children had gone outside to play.

Harmony was especially nervous. She had never been around another troll when she was giving birth. She could hear Poppy’s heavy breathing. She felt her heart squeeze. She recalled an incident in her past. She was trying so hard not to panic.

Branch had Poppy’s hand. He was nervous. He was hoping this would go smoothly for his Queen.

After a few hours of labor, Poppy delivered a healthy pink glitter baby girl. She had white hair and a little bright pink nose. She was very obviously Guy Diamond’s daughter.

Branch delivered the newborn and felt his heart sink. He quietly cleaned her as she let out soft cries. He was really hoping she was his baby. He was worried about Poppy. He gave her to Smidge and went to take Poppy’s hand. He gave it a gentle squeeze, to let her know he was there for her.

Poppy looked up and instantly burst into tears. She had hoped they could keep this baby, but it was very clear who the daddy was. She kept telling herself that she had done this for Smidge, but her heart did feel broken.

Smidge cradled the baby and then looked up at Poppy. She felt her heart break when she saw that Poppy was crying. She wasn’t sure how to react.

Guy Diamond heard the newborn cries and came in to peek. He smiled, seeing that she was healthy and a very beautiful color. “She is so beautiful Poppy. You did a good job.” He gently took the baby and looked her over.

Branch looked down at his pod. His little one showed no sign of showing up, but he knew he or she would be going to them as well. This meant they wouldn’t be raising any of these babies. He sighed and held Poppy. He knew she was upset.

Poppy cried into Branch’s vest and clung to him. She wasn’t happy about this at all. She really hoped they could keep one.

Harmony frowned and suddenly left. She had tears in her eyes as she went to go hide. This odd exchange between her new friends had brought back extremely hurtful memories from her past life.

Smidge shifted and hugged into Poppy. “I hate seeing you this upset. You may keep this one Poppy. Please don’t cry.”

“No, I did this for you. Please take her.” Poppy hugged her and sniffled. “I know where she is if I need to go over and snuggle with her for a little bit.”

Guy Diamond joined in the hug but was careful with his little daughter in his arm. “You are an amazing friend Poppy. We owe you big time for this.”

Branch sank into the bed and sighed. He was glad Poppy was able to let the baby go, even if under distress, but he was still worried. He was also now worried about Harmony too. She had left quickly and without saying a word.

“Now it is Branch’s turn. Unless he just got fat on us.” Guy teased to try and ease the tension.

Branch shot a glare in Guy Diamond’s direction. He grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. “Leave me alone. My pod will come when he or she is ready.”

“Branch! Don’t throw things at him, he is holding a baby!” Poppy went to make sure the baby was alright. Of course, she was just fine.

Smidge popped Branch with another pillow, and a small pillow fight commenced between the two.

“Ok children, that is enough. Let’s let Poppy rest.” Guy Diamond was amused and had made no move to stop them physically.

“Knock it off Branch...” Poppy grabbed the pillow as he went to nail Smidge. She took it from him and nailed him instead. “Brat...”

Smidge smirked and leaned in towards him. She was so close that Branch went a little cross eyed. “Told you I would kick your ass.” She booped him one more time before getting off the bed. She had a demonic grin on her face.

Branch grumbled and crossed his arms. “I was having fun.” He admitted, which was extremely rare to hear come out of his mouth.

Guy Diamond chuckled and gently gave the baby to Smidge. “Before we go, I want to name this little one.”

“How about Alexandrite? Alex for short?” Smidge held the little one close.

“I like Crystal.” Guy Diamond smiled softly.

“I like Crystal too.” Poppy chimed in. She thought it was pretty.

“Sounds good to me.” Smidge smiled and gave Poppy one more careful hug.

All four exchanged hugs before Guy Diamond and Smidge headed out the door with their babies. They had some bonding to do with little Crystal.

Poppy looked around and noticed that Harmony was gone. “Did you see where Harmony went?”

“No, but she did leave upset. Get some rest. I will go look for her.” Branch heaved off the bed and went towards Lily’s room. He found the bed empty, so he began looking around the flower pod for her.

“You should be resting too. You will be having your pod too any day now.” Poppy followed him reluctantly. She was very sore from just giving birth.

“If I move around the pod might come.” Branch didn’t see Harmony in the kitchen or living space. He finally found her in the closet. “What is wrong Harmony?”

Harmony was hugging her knees and shook her head when he asked what was wrong. It was clear she had been crying this whole time.

Poppy frowned and pulled Harmony into a hug. “It is ok. Crystal is right next door. This was planned.” She sensed this was the issue.

“It isn’t that.” Harmony shook her head. She was not ready to tell them what happened to her. Not yet. She did however have a confession. “I am just really scared.” She felt her heart race. She put her hand on her belly. “I ran away to save my own pod and I don’t want anything to happen.” She was unwilling to share more. She was starting to shake.

Branch saw her hand go over her belly and felt his heart race. He saw it now. She had a tiny bump that had been hidden under her dress. Her behavior lately was starting to make a lot of sense now. He wasn’t sure how to react, but he did want to tell someone off. It was extremely clear that someone in her life before Troll Village had been especially cruel.

“I knew it!” Poppy gave her a gentle hug and smiled softly. She had suspected from the very beginning that Harmony was with pod. She had made sure to give her extra servings when she ate. She knew the young mother needed the extra calories. “Don’t worry, nothing bad will happen to you or your pod. I promise you are safe.”

Harmony took a deep breath and hugged into Poppy. She was still shaken. She had been here for about two months now, but everything still made her nervous and jumpy. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to get upset.”

“Harmony, do you know how far along you are?” Branch asked, concerned for her. Harmony was young, and he wanted to make sure she was taken care of.

“I think I am four months along?” Harmony cupped her face into her hands and began to cry. She had no clue and was scared that she would get in trouble.

Poppy held her gently and ran her hand along her hair. “Please don’t be upset.” She began humming one of her favorite songs. It seemed to always calm Harmony down.

Branch clenched his fists. She didn’t appear to know how far along she was. That gave him unpleasant clues into what may have happened to her. He stormed away, needing to vent without scaring poor Harmony or his Poppy.

“Branch, please don’t leave the flower pod alone!” Poppy watched him head for the door and then winced when he slammed it. She really hoped he didn’t go down to the bunker alone.

“I made him mad.” Harmony sniffled and rubbed her eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“He isn’t mad at you. Let’s go to the kitchen. I am hungry and could use a snack. I am sure you need one too.” Poppy led her towards the kitchen and grabbed two cupcakes. She gave one to Harmony, and then began to eat one too. She kept glancing at the door. If she wasn’t sore and had just given birth, she would have chased after Branch.

Harmony sat down and began to eat. She felt a little better, but she was still very nervous.


	23. Rage Gone Wrong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch makes a regrettable mistake.

After leaving the royal flower pod, Branch made his way to his bunker. He wanted to be alone. He gave angry glares to anyone who tried to follow and told them to leave him alone. Once in the bunker, he slammed the door closed and headed down the elevator shaft. Once down, he began yelling and cussing. “That son of a bitch!” He was angry at Harmony’s mate. He felt there was no need for her to be this terrified. He wanted to beat the glitter out of him.

Branch threw a few things around, and stopped, hearing the lever of his elevator shaft break. He turned and widened his eyes. “Shit!” He groaned and started looking for parts to repair the lever. “Clumsy Branch.” He grumbled as started grabbing wood and twine. As he grabbed a stick from one of the shelves, he felt a contraction. He dropped what he had in his arms and said several colorful words.

Once the contraction calmed down, he struggled to get everything picked back up. He then made his way towards the elevator shaft and began repairing the lever. “This is bad timing kid.”

Back at the royal flower pod, Poppy had curled back up in bed. She took a well-deserved nap. She knew Branch would come home when he was ready and if not, she would have someone go look for him after her nap.

Harmony sat down on the couch and began playing with some yarn. She carefully untangled it from when one of the kids had played with it, and then began working with it. She may not see well, but she did know how to make blankets with yarn.

After a few hours and many breaks, Branch got the lever put back together, but now he was in a lot of pain. He was worried he wasn’t going to make it back home in time. Concerned for the safety of the baby, he stayed down there and waited. Someone would come down here eventually looking for him. He hoped they would come in time.

Poppy woke up from her nap and saw that it was getting dark. She didn’t see Branch, which really concerned her. She got up and walked to the door. She went out and headed for Guy Diamond and Smidge’s home. She knocked on their door.

Guy Diamond walked to the door and opened it. He smiled, seeing Poppy. “Is it Branch’s turn?” He frowned, realizing she looked worried.

“Branch left this afternoon and hasn’t been back.” Poppy teared up, worried about him.

Guy Diamond looked around. “Go lay down. I will go find him.” He told Smidge what was going on, and then headed for the bunker. It was the obvious place to check first.

Poppy sat down on their couch and waited impatiently for him to come back.

In the bunker, Branch was looking for a blanket. He found one and walked back over to the elevator shaft. He leaned on the wall and closed his eyes. He was in a lot of pain.

Guy Diamond got to the bunker and went through the secret entrance. He got to the elevator shaft and saw that it was down. That meant Branch was down there. He sighed and turned the lever, so it would come up. “Branch?! Are you alright?”

“Hell no!” Branch watched the elevator head up. He was glad Guy Diamond was there but was hurting. He laid on his side and let out a soft cry. “Hurry, this kid is coming!” He groaned and grabbed the little one as she was born. He began cleaning her. She let out soft cries. She was a beautiful shade of sky blue with royal blue hair.

“I’m coming Branch. Hang on.” Guy Diamond waited impatiently for the elevator to come up. Once it was there, he got on it and headed down. He started hearing newborn cries. Once he got down, he helped Branch clean his daughter. “Why didn’t you come home?!”

“The god damn elevator lever broke right before I went into labor! It took me this entire time to fix the damn thing!” Branch snapped angrily. He was not amused.

“Why did you come down here in the first place?! You knew you were due today!” Guy Diamond was raging mad. Branch had upset him, and he wasn’t handling the scare well. “You could have both died!”

“I’m fine Guy! Calm the hell down!” Branch cradled the baby to him and sneered. He was pissed.

Guy Diamond let out a heavy sigh and watched him. “Is she alright?” He was still mad, but Branch was right, he did need to calm down for the baby.

“Yeah, she is fine. Are you done yelling at me?” Branch grumbled angrily.

Guy Diamond nodded and knelt down. “Yeah, I am done yelling. Are you ok?”

“Hell no, I am not ok. I just gave birth in my bunker.” Branch gently gave the baby girl to her daddy and laid on his side. He was very sore and cranky. He was also bleeding excessively.

Guy Diamond saw the blood and noticed there was a lot. “I promise to be right back.” He covered Branch up and then hurried out of the bunker. He needed to get help. He went straight for his flower pod. He gave the baby to Smidge and then ran to get Biggie without saying a word. Once he found him, they headed back down to the bunker. Biggie picked up Branch and they headed straight for the medical pod. Once there, they went to work to fix a large tear from the birth. Guy Diamond was so glad he found him in time and wanted to tell him off later. That had been way too close.


	24. A Heated Debate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch and Guy Diamond have a disagreement.

A few hours after Branch was saved from his bunker, Guy Diamond, Smidge, and Poppy came in to check on him. They had asked DJ Suki to watch the babies while they went to see him. Branch was on his side, unable to nap due to being in a lot of pain.

“I am so glad you are ok.” Poppy hugged into him and sighed in relief. He had scared her again.

“What the hell were you doing down there?” Smidge crossed her arms. She wasn’t amused. They didn’t need to lose their king over something like this. It was preventable.

Branch hugged Poppy and then shot a glare at Smidge. He was still in a very foul mood, and now was not the time to mess with him. “It is no one’s business what I was doing down there. I got stuck and things happened. I’m fine.”

“You could have died Branch! You nearly bled to death!” Guy Diamond was still also in a foul mood.

“Oh great, you are going to start yelling at me again! Leave me alone Guy! I am fine!” Branch grumbled and hugged into a pillow. He was very sore.

“If you hadn’t gone down there in the first place, you would have had the baby in a safe place!” Guy Diamond snapped angrily.

“Boys, please don’t yell. Branch survived, and that’s what matters.” Poppy interrupted with a sigh.

“I didn’t want to scare Harmony, OK?! I was in a bad mood and needed to vent!” Branch sneered and grumbled angrily.

“What does Harmony have to do about all this?!” Guy Diamond didn’t understand. He just thought Branch was being difficult like usual.

“I didn’t want to scare the crap out of her!” Branch clenched his fists. “Drop it now Guy!”

“Don’t do that again then!” Guy Diamond sat down hard in the chair. He was cranky.

“I don’t plan on having any more pods!” Branch sighed and gave Poppy an apologetic glance when he saw her frown. He meant he didn’t want to have any more come from him directly. He didn’t mind if she wanted one more.

“Alright, that’s enough.” Smidge got between them. “Cool off.”

“Yeah, OK fine. Have you thought of a name?” Branch glared at Guy Diamond.

“I was thinking Aquamarine.” Guy Diamond looked down at Smidge.

“Hate it. No way is she going to be named Aquamarine.” Branch shook his head.

“What about Jade?” Smidge suggested and smiled.

“Does it really have to be a gem name?” Branch crossed his arms.

“Yes! That was the theme we choose for the five of them.” Guy Diamond shot a glare at Branch.

“Ruby is a pretty name.” Poppy suggested with a smile.

“Don’t encourage the gem names Poppy. Let the girl have a different name.” Branch returned the glare at Guy Diamond. “I gave birth to her, I have a say in what her name gets to be.”

“Do you have a name in mind Branch?” Smidge sat next to him. She could tell he was having a hard time letting the baby go but was being mad about it instead of upset like Poppy was.

“She looks like a little Peony flower.” Branch sighed heavily. “I think Peony would be a nice name.” He glared up at Guy Diamond, daring him to argue.

“Oh Branch, that is a very pretty name.” Poppy smiled and hugged into him.

“I really like it too.” Smidge smiled and hugged into Branch. She wasn’t going to argue with him.

Guy Diamond glared at Branch but didn’t say a word. He had hoped to keep a theme with these little ones, and Branch just had to make it different. He was more than a little annoyed.

“Peony it is then. I hope you enjoy her. Don’t be afraid to drop her and Crystal off occasionally so they can get spoiled at our flower pod.” Branch turned so his back was to them. He was going to miss that little squirt kicking and stretching inside of him but was glad she was OK and going to a good home.

“Thank you Branch. I really appreciate you and Poppy.” Smidge gave him a small hug and then took Guy Diamond’s hand. They walked out together. They didn’t want to be away from the newborns for long.

Poppy crawled into the medical bed with Branch and spooned him. She knew how he felt and understood. The two snuggled like that and eventually fell asleep. It had been a long and hard day for them both.


	25. Healing Vibes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch and Poppy do whatever it takes to try and get Harmony happy again.

A month passed by since Branch and Poppy had had their babies for Smidge and Guy Diamond. They had recovered well from their births and spent as much time as possible over at their house to help with the five little ones. They were growing well and were doing great, which was a huge relief.

Poppy found out that Harmony’s birthday was coming up around the same time she was due to have her pod. She wanted to make the day very special for Harmony. She was really growing fond of the girl and wanted her to have a good birthday. She began preparing a birthday party for the young mother. She knew she loved music, so that had been her primary focus. They had a month to plan this out.

Branch had sprawled out notes on the floor and was going over his plans today. He had also made special arrangements for a big surprise for Harmony. He hoped it would go according to his plans.

Harmony was taking a bath. She could hear them scrambling around in the royal flower pod today and wondered what they were up to. She shampooed her hair, and then ran some herb oils in her hair. It was sometimes hard to get the tangles all out. When she finished her bath, she came out and began getting her hair and teeth brushed. She then reached over and found that her dress was not there. She began looking for it. She didn’t see it or feel it on the floor. “Poppy?”

“Are you ready? Here is a dress for you.” Poppy put the dress on the door handle and closed the door to give Harmony privacy.

Harmony picked up the dress and ran her hands over it. A soft smile crossed her face. This dress was extra soft and felt warm. It was starting to get cold outside, and the fashion twins had worked hard to make sure Harmony had a few comfortable dresses to get through her last month of pregnancy. This dress was fuzzy and looked white with some bright pink hearts on it. She couldn’t make out what the décor was, but it still made her smile. They were all so sweet to her. She put it on and stepped out of the bathroom.

Poppy grinned and hugged into her. “You are so pretty in this dress!” She giggled, seeing a string of yarn sticking out of Harmony’s hair. “Have you been making blankets again?”

“Yeah, this one is almost done.” Harmony pulled the blanket out and showed it to Poppy. It had five shades of blue and green. “I hope to have it done soon.” She wanted to give this one to Branch. She had given Poppy one already. She had several others tucked under her bed to await the colder winter months.

“Wow, it’s so pretty! You have serious talent Harmony.” Poppy smiled and checked the blanket over. “Who is it for this time?”

“It’s a secret.” Harmony put it back into her hair and tucked it in, so it didn’t stick out again.

“Fair enough. How is your little bean today?” Poppy gently put her hand on Harmony’s belly and smiled when she felt a kick.

Harmony startled when she touched her belly. She was still trying to get use to that. She put her hand over Poppy’s hand. “Very active today. Lots of kicks and stretches.” She moved Poppy’s hand to another spot where she felt more movement.

“Ladies? May I interrupt this dance?” Branch teased and grabbed Poppy’s waist. He turned her around and began dancing with her.

Poppy grinned and grabbed his hand. She twirled him around and then gave him a kiss. “Mmm…”

Harmony blinked a few times and then let out a soft giggle. It was fun watching them when they were both in a good mood. 

Branch was mid-kiss with Poppy when he heard the soft giggle. He glanced up and grinned. This shy girl did have a sense of humor after all. He was starting to worry. “Did I just hear a laugh come from you Harmony?”

Poppy turned and pulled Harmony into a hug. “Aww, I love your laugh…” She beamed, glad that Harmony was starting to relax.

Harmony blushed lightly and hugged Poppy back. “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, laughing is a good thing.” Branch grabbed her hand. “I have something for you.” He led her towards the flower pod door.

“Hold on Branch, slow down.” Poppy followed them. She wanted to make sure Harmony didn’t trip over anything.

Harmony widened her eyes as Branch practically dragged her out of the royal flower pod. She looked around as he made his way towards the lake. She heard the water and began shaking her head. “No! No, don’t!”

Branch stopped and held her hand. “Harmony? What’s wrong? We are all safe.”

Poppy gave her other hand a gentle squeeze. “Relax, it’s alright.”

Harmony looked between them and then down. “Bad memories of the water.”

“We are not going in the water. It’s too cold and I don’t like water either. I was taking you to the beach. I have something for you there.” Branch gave her back a few pats to reassure her. “It’s OK.”

“Oh…” Harmony relaxed and kept glancing towards the lake. She shivered, remembering an incident when she was younger.

Poppy smiled softly and had them walk a little slower now. She didn’t want to frighten Harmony any further then they had done unintentionally.

Branch led them to the caterbus. The whole Trolla-palooza was there.

“Captain no-slappy! How are you doing today?” Cloud Guy grinned and winked at Poppy.

“Poppy! You said I would be driving the bus this time...” Branch shot a glare at Poppy. He recalled when they had nearly crashed while taking the trollings up the mountain to pick huckleberries.

“It’s all good. I talked to him.” Poppy grinned and waved to Cloud Guy. “Cloud Guy, this is Harmony. Harmony, this is Cloud Guy.”

“Nice to meet you. I have heard a lot about you.” Cloud Guy kissed the top of Harmony’s hand and grinned.

Harmony pulled her hand away and flushed. She wasn’t so sure about this.

“Just don’t crash the bus this time. We will have a baby on board.” Branch grumbled and grabbed his guitar. He ran his fingers through the strings and bit his bottom lip. “Perfect…”

Poppy pulled out her cow bell and smirked. She was totally ready to play.

“Hold on Poppy, someone here needs an instrument.” Branch grabbed a box and brought it over to Harmony. He gave it to her and grinned. “Surprise.”

Harmony looked confused but opened the box. She pulled out a violin and gasped. “How?” She ran her fingers along the strings and felt tears fill her eyes. “How did you know I knew how to play?”

“We didn’t.” Poppy smirked. “I figured we could teach you how.”

Branch grinned and smiled at Poppy. This was going over better then he thought it would. “I would love to hear you play it.”

Harmony began adjusting the tune nobs on the violin. It was out of sync. Once it was fixed, she took her violin bow and ran it down the strings. The sound was still not right. She made a few more adjustments and then began to play a soft lullaby. She closed her eyes and began to sing in a soft beautiful singing voice. As she began to sing, her skin began to change color. It went from dull gray, to a beautiful sea foam green. Her hair began to change too. From the right, it was emerald green, and then the middle was grass green, and the left was a soft baby green. 

Poppy squirmed with excitement. “You were right Branch. She needed to play music.” She took his hand and squeezed it. She was so excited.

“Yeah, and to have us show that we cared.” Branch held Poppy’s hand and listened to Harmony play on her violin. Her colors were even better then he imagined. He couldn’t help but admire her beauty.

Once she was done, Harmony lowered her violin and smiled. She loved playing and was so excited. “Thank you so much. I don’t deserve this.”

“You deserve it. You have brought our home so much happiness. Let’s get going now. We need to share the love.” Poppy helped Harmony onto the caterbus. The rest of the gang joined them, and they all played beautiful music together as they went down the trails of the forest.


	26. Cherry Bomb

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cherry realizes where Harmony comes from, and it puts Branch on edge.

As they ended their little tour around the forest, everyone started to get off the caterbus. Cherry, Blossom, and Junebug were there to greet Biggie when he came off.

Branch helped Poppy and Harmony off the caterbus and smiled when he saw his sister. He waved to her and gave her a cheeky grin. He was so excited that he had figured out how to get Harmony happy again.

Cherry saw him and smiled. She then turned her sights to Harmony. She widened her eyes and walked over to Branch. “I need to talk to you.” She took him aside.

“Cherry, it’s not my baby. I swear!” Branch grumbled as he was pulled to the side.

“Uh huh, we all know you can’t keep your pants on.” Cherry teased for a moment, and then shot a glance towards Harmony. “I thought I recognized her before, but now I know that I have known her. She was three years old when I escaped our village. She was kidnapped and brought to our old village. I didn’t see her much. They kept her hidden. I didn’t think she survived. She was born blind as a bat. You know our old village doesn’t take well to any disabilities.”

Branch’s eyes went wide. This explained so much. No wonder Harmony was extremely jumpy and easy to scare. He looked over at Harmony and frowned. “She is lucky to be alive. I wonder why they kept her alive.”

“I don’t know, but if there was a good reason to keep her alive, they will be looking for her.” Cherry looked concerned.

“We will keep on guard, but please remember it was hard to find this place. Chances are she won’t be found.” Branch looked at Cherry and sighed. “Don’t tell anyone what is going on with her. We don’t need to start any unnecessary panic.”

“Alright, but if I see any trouble, you know I will be giving your door a knock.” Cherry broke away and walked over to Biggie. She gave him a big hug and smiled.

Branch walked over to Poppy and gave her hand a gentle squeeze. He gave her the look he often gave her when he was worried about something.

“Keep practicing Harmony. I will be right back.” Poppy walked with Branch away from the crowd. He was so happy before this and wondered why he had a sudden mood change. “What’s wrong Branch?”

Branch explained what he had just learnt from Cherry. He was concerned for the safety of the village, their children, and their friends.

Poppy frowned and looked towards Harmony. She was now very worried about the young mother too. She looked at Branch and sighed. “All we can do is keep an eye out for danger and take action if it comes. It took us about a week to walk here from that village. Chances are they won’t find her any time soon, if at all. She is very lucky she ran in the direction she came. I can’t imagine doing that with cracked ribs and a broken arm and being nearly blind too. No wonder her arm was so swollen by the time she got here. I didn’t think they were recent injuries…”

“Let’s keep this quiet. We don’t need anyone to panic. If they come, I will take care of it.” Branch reassured and ran his hand through her hair. “We can get through this together.”

Poppy nodded and kissed him. She grabbed his hand and walked back over to the group. She planned to take one day at a time, and if they needed to, they would protect their village.

Branch kissed her back, and then walked with her back to the group. He smiled and thanked everyone for coming.

Poppy gently took Harmony’s hand and began leading her towards the royal flower pod. She had a big grin on her face.

Harmony walked with Poppy and held her violin close. She had the biggest smile on her face.

Branch’s heart began to race. He was really hoping Poppy wouldn’t bring up what they had just talked about. He walked with them and kept glancing at Poppy.

Once they got into the flower pod, Poppy pulled Harmony close and gave her a gentle kiss. She had wanted to do that since Harmony revealed her true colors. She had had the biggest crush on the young gray troll.

Harmony startled at Poppy’s sudden embrace, and gasped when she kissed her. She was expecting that at all. She didn’t return the kiss at first, but Poppy’s gentle embrace soon relaxed her, and she returned it, feeling warmth in her cheeks. It was the best kiss she had ever had.

Branch dropped his jaws. He didn’t see that coming at all. He stood there thinking he had been the naughty one thinking about how beautiful Harmony was, and Poppy appeared to be having the same thoughts. “Erm, Poppy?”

Poppy broke the kiss and giggled. “Yes Branch?” She looked over at him and smiled.

Harmony had a cheeky grin on her face. She was already thinking this had to be one of the best days of her life.

“You just kissed her.” Branch looked between them. They both seemed to like this, which had him blushing bright red and feeling aroused.

“Mmm, yeah I know.” Poppy pulled him close and began kissing him next.

Harmony played with the end of her fuzzy white dress with her free hand and listened to them exchange saliva. She was red in the cheeks still from kissing Poppy.

Branch didn’t argue when she started kissing him passionately. He soon broke the kiss and chuckled. “Shouldn’t be talk about this?”

“What is there to talk about? I know you love her the same way with the way you look at her every night when we eat dinner.” Poppy gave him a dreamy look. She was feeling bliss.

Harmony blushed and looked up at them. She shifted and set her violin aside. She then got closer to them and looked up at Branch. “Is that true?”

Branch looked between them and felt his heart racing again. He had tried so hard to behave, but it seemed he had been caught by his lovely queen. He glanced at Poppy and smiled softly. “Yeah, I have.” He grabbed Poppy’s hand. “Does this mean?”

“Harmony, I want you to be a part of our family.” Poppy turned to her and hugged her close.

“To be your m-mate?” Harmony wanted to make sure she understood. She didn’t want to get into trouble with them for misunderstanding their intentions.

Branch watched Poppy and smiled. He gave a firm nod to her in approval. He definitely accepted.

“Yes Harmony, as our mate.” Poppy beamed. She was shaking with excitement. She had been planning this day for weeks. She was waiting until Harmony relaxed, and their outing today had relaxed her considerably.

“What about my pod?” Harmony looked worried as she put her hand over her belly. She was worried that they wouldn’t accept her baby.

“We will raise your pod as if he or she was our own kid.” Branch pulled her into a gentle hug.

“You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to Harmony. We just want you to know how we feel about you.” Poppy smiled softly. She knew the poor girl was nervous. She was expecting that.

Harmony hugged into Branch and looked up at him. She had never felt this secure in her entire life. “I accept.”

Branch gave Harmony a kiss. His heart fluttered as she embraced the kiss and returned it. He was very happy that she accepted.


	27. Harmony Bliss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Branch, Poppy, and Harmony have a very pleasant night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No underage reading beyond this point. You have been warned!

After Harmony accepted their request to be a part of their family, Poppy began planning so that the kids would have a babysitter. They went to DJ Suki and Fuzzbert’s flower pod for the night.

Harmony was on her bed in Lily’s room. She was playing with the blanket she was making for Branch and trying to wrap her brain around what just happened. She never thought in a million years that she would be with another female troll, let alone a couple. 

Branch peeked into Lily’s room and smiled, seeing her sitting on the bed. “Are you ok Harmony?”

“Yeah, I am ok.” Harmony put the blanket away and looked over at him. “Just thinking.”

Branch walked over and sat by her. “You know you are safe here, right? Poppy and I want to take care of you. You deserve to be happy. Poppy told me more then once that everyone deserves to be happy.”

“I know I am safe. I just have a lot of bad memories. Thank you for taking good care of me.” Harmony hugged him and closed her eyes. 

“Of course.” Branch held her and smiled. “Are you hungry?” He stood up and took her hand gently.

“Yeah, I could use a bite.” Harmony stood up and walked towards the kitchen. She got in the kitchen and grabbed a cracker. She munched on it quietly.

Branch followed her and sat at the table. He knew Poppy would be back any minute. “You have a beautiful voice.”

“Thank you.” Harmony drank some juice, and then sat down beside him. “I haven’t sung in years.”

Poppy came in and grinned at Branch as she closed the door. “DJ and Fuzzy are watching the kids.” She made her way towards Branch and sat in his lap. “We should move this to the bedroom.”

Harmony blushed and looked at Poppy with wide eyes. She hadn’t talked like that in front of her before.

“Mmm, yes let’s move this to the bedroom.” Branch took Poppy in his arms and carried her towards their bedroom.

Poppy giggled and kissed him as she was carried towards the bedroom.

Branch kissed her back, and then set her down in the bed. “Be right back my queen.” He headed back to the kitchen and gently picked up Harmony.

Harmony squeaked when she was picked up. She put her arms around his neck and looked up at him. She was blushing. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest. She was very nervous.

“Do you trust us?” Branch smiled down at her. He didn’t want to scare her.

“Yes, I trust you both.” Harmony leaned her head into him. She felt him set her down in the bed and blushed, feeling Poppy reach over and kiss her. She kissed her back.

“We love you Harmony.” Poppy smiled down at her and ran her hand through her soft three toned green hair. “You are so beautiful.” She had already removed her clothes before they had returned.

“Yes, we love you and I agree, you are very beautiful.” Branch took off his vest and joined them in bed. He hadn’t taken his pants off yet. He wanted to make sure Harmony was OK with this before proceeding.

Harmony clung to Poppy and smiled. “Thank you Poppy. You two have made me feel so special.” She heard Branch take off his vest and felt her cheeks flush. She knew that sound and started to breathe a little hard. “Please be gentle.” She wanted it but was scared.

“Of course.” Poppy kissed her cheek and then ran her hand down Harmony’s dress. “If you get scared, don’t be afraid to tell us to stop.” She grabbed the bottom of Harmony’s dress and pulled it up gently. She gently started to pull her panties down. She felt warm down in her core. She liked what she saw.

Branch like what he saw too and started pulling his pants off. He kissed Harmony passionately. 

Harmony shivered, feeling Poppy’s gentle touch on her side and hip. She looked down at her when she started to pull off her panties. She let out a soft giggle when he began kissing her. She was nervous, but they were being very gentle, and she was very ticklish.

Poppy threw Harmony’s panties to the side, and then reached down and began licking her tender vulva.

Branch broke the kiss and grinned, seeing Poppy making work of Harmony’s snatch. “Mmm…” He moved so he was behind Poppy. He took his length and pushed into her. He began thrusting gently at first. He was taking this slow for Harmony’s sake.

Harmony arched her back and shivered. Poppy’s tongue felt amazing. She had never felt something this amazing before.

Poppy moaned when Branch entered her. She backed into him a little and pulled Harmony closer. She wasn’t done suckling on her.

Branch quickened his pace and ran his tongue along Poppy’s back. He pushed in deeper and moaned her name.

Harmony gasped, feeling Poppy’s teeth along her tender bits. She began taking her dress off. This felt amazing, and she wanted to feel their touch.

Poppy shivered and tightened her walls. She shifted and began to finger Harmony gently. “Do you like?”

“Yes, I like.” Harmony moaned softly and looked towards them. She was glad that she talked to her.

Branch pulled out and kissed Poppy. He then gently positioned himself over Harmony and entered her gently. He put his hand under Harmony’s head and kissed her gently, before gently thrusting. 

Poppy grinned and moved so she was next to Harmony. She gently took her hand and put it at her vulva. She murmured that she wanted to feel her touch.

Harmony gasped, feeling Branch’s length inside her. She shivered and tightened her walls. This was way better then she had imagined. She felt Poppy’s hand move her hand and felt the warm flesh of Poppy’s vulva at her finger tips. She began massaging her gently.

This continued well into the night, before the three of them snuggled up and fell asleep. They were extremely happy.


	28. Making It Official

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> King Branch and Queen Poppy change Harmony’s life forever.

A couple weeks had passed by since Harmony got her true colors back. Satin and Chenille were hard at work, making a special dress for the sweet girl. They had decided a soft and warm light blue dress would be perfect for this special day. They worked together, quickly resizing the dress to accommodate the size of Harmony’s expanding belly.

“Poppy, I am not sure this is a good idea. We should wait. She is suspected to be due in just a couple of weeks. What if she goes into labor?” Branch was putting on a dark blue suit and bow. He had a leaf felt crown on.

“We will make it short if she needs to leave. It’ll be fine.” Poppy was putting her hair into a braid and put on her flower crown. She was sporting a warm baby pink dress. She was very excited.

“What about her age? She is eighteen years old. She can’t bind to be queen until she is twenty-one.” Branch began helping Lily with her dress. She was going to be the flower girl.

“She will be a princess until that day comes. It will be fine.” Poppy made sure Lotus and Jazz were dressed up. Jazz kept removing his bow. He was less then thrilled about being in a suit.

“Daddy? Does this mean Harmony will be my mama too?” Lily looked up at him. She was excited and nervous. She was picking up on everyone’s nerves.

“You may call her mama if you want baby, but you don’t have to.” Branch gave her a hug and smiled at her. She was wearing a ponytail and was looking so much like her mama. He was very proud.

“Yay!” Lily ran out of the room and towards the living space. She circled around the fashion twins and giggled. She was very excited that she got to have two mamas.

“Careful Lily.” Poppy followed her out and smiled. She saw Harmony’s dress and grinned. “Satin and Chenille, you two are amazing.” She watched them work, grinning ear to ear.

Harmony blushed but held perfectly still. She could feel the twins working hard on her dress and didn’t dare move in fear of being poked with a needle.

“We are missing one more thing.” Satin pulled out a flower tiara and put it over Harmony’s three-toned hair. Chenille made sure it got pinned in, and then the both stepped back to inspect their work. “Perfect!” They both said at the same time.

“Oh, girls, she looks fantastic…” Branch walked over and smiled at their new bride. His heart pound in his chest. He was really hoping today would go perfect for them.

“We should get going. We have a village waiting.” Poppy grabbed Harmony’s hand and began leading her out the door.

Branch picked up Jazz and followed them. Lily and Lotus were beside him. Satin and Chenille followed them out the door and headed for their flower pod. They needed to get dressed quickly.

Guy Diamond was going over the vows that Poppy had given him. Since it was a royal wedding, and Branch couldn’t marry himself, he was given the responsibility of marrying them. He had already dressed in an emerald green suit and tie. He kept looking up at Smidge, who was struggling to get Daisy dressed. The six-year-old glitter trolling was not having it. She hated wearing clothes.

“No cupcakes for a week unless you get this dress on!” Smidge grabbed her with her hair and smirked as the little rascal squirmed. She knew this little one had her stubborn streak.

“No!” Daisy squirmed and kicked. She wasn’t going to wear a dress. She refused to. It just felt way to weird on her glitter coated skin.

Smidge got the dress on Daisy and then let her go. She sighed, when Daisy pulled it off and ran off. “She is as stubborn as I was at her age.”

“Dad, do I have to wear this suit?” Emery complained. He hated wearing clothes just as much as Daisy.

“Yes son, you need to wear the suit. For uncle Branch and aunt Poppy. Daisy, put the dress back on young lady.” Guy Diamond got up and tucked the vows into his pocket.

“Yes daddy.” Daisy put the dress back on and then crossed her arms. She was not amused.

Smidge raised a brow. Of course, they listened to him and not her. She sighed and went to get the babies ready. Guy Diamond joined her.

River was in the bedroom, playing with her dress. She loved it and was excited that it twirled. She didn’t want to leave and chance of it getting dirty.

Once their kids were ready, Guy Diamond and Smidge made their way to the concert mushroom with their eight little ones.

After everyone gathered, Lily began throwing flower pedals around. When she was done, she stood by Poppy and smiled up at her mama. She loved that everyone seemed to be in a really good mood.

Guy Diamond pulled out the vows, smiled as he began to go through them.

Branch sat between his two girls. Poppy was on his right, and Harmony was on his left. He had them by the hand and gave them each a gentle hand squeeze. He was extremely happy.

Poppy gave the squeeze back, and then smiled down at her young daughter. She whispered that she was proud of her.

Harmony listened to Guy Diamond and tried to focus on his dark clothing. She could feel her heart pounding. She was so nervous.

“With this declaration of marriage, I hear by declare that on Harmony’s twenty first birthday, she will take the throne and all of its glory as a second queen of our village.” Guy Diamond put the vows back in his pocket and smiled. “You may now kiss your brides.”

Branch smiled and gave each girl a kiss, and then hugged them both to him. He was a very happy king.

Poppy kissed Branch, and then gave Harmony a kiss too. She felt extreme excitement. She was so happy that Harmony was officially part of their lives.

The whole crowd cheered. They were very happy for the trio.

Harmony was shaking with anxiety and excitement. She had heard the words that she would be queen one day. She knew this meant she had a lot to learn, and that she was going to have a lot of responsibilities. She gasped when Branch kissed her but returned it with fierce passion. When Poppy kissed her too, she felt her heart swell. Her life only kept getting better, and she really liked it. She really hoped this would never end.


	29. The Blind Princess And The Little Thief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harmony’s nineteenth birthday has arrived, and Poppy has big plans to celebrate.

Harmony’s birthday had come, and Poppy made arrangements so that the whole Trolla-Palooza gang would play for her. She had everyone get ready. She set her cow bell next to the couch. She wasn’t going to have them leave the flower pod. Harmony was due anytime now and was not up to going out. She didn’t blame her. She knew the last few weeks were rough before giving birth.

Harmony came out of the bedroom and went to lay down on the couch. She was very tired. She hadn’t slept well. Nightmares had plagued her the last few nights, and she wasn’t getting enough sleep.

Branch walked over and kissed Harmony’s cheek. “Happy Birthday Harmony.”

Poppy gave Harmony a gentle hug and then turned to the gang. “Hit it Smidge!”

Smidge picked up her trumpet and began playing a soft birthday tune. They all began singing to her. 

Harmony smiled softly and listened to them sing. They made her feel so special.

Once they were done singing, they began playing one song after another.

Harmony closed her eyes and focused on each instrument. She could hear Guy Diamond beating drums, Smidge on her trumpet, Branch on his guitar, Poppy with her cow bell, Fuzzbert on his Kazoo, DJ with her beats, Cooper with his harmonica, and Satin and Chenille on their electric keyboard. Listening to them gave her such joy.

When they finished playing, Poppy went into the kitchen and grabbed cupcakes. She set them on the coffee table in front of the couch and grinned. “Eat up everyone!” She grinned and walked towards the bedroom. She had a present for Harmony.

Branch sat beside Harmony on the couch and smiled at her. “Are you having a good birthday?”

Harmony nodded slowly. She was uncomfortable, but she didn’t want to ruin the good time. She made no move to take a cupcake. “You are all way too sweet.”

“Mmffmm ish goof.” Cooper talked with his mouth full. He loved cupcakes.

“We want you to have a good day Harmony. Every birthday is worth a huge celebration.” DJ Suki smiled at young Harmony. They had all become very fond of the young troll.

“I will be right back.” Harmony got up and headed for the bathroom. 

Poppy came back with her gift and frowned seeing blood on the couch. She looked at Branch, concerned. “Where did she go?”

“Bathroom.” Branch looked at the spot on the couch and frowned. “Thank you for coming everyone. Harmony needs rest.” He started having them all go.

Smidge walked over and saw the blood. She smiled and gave Branch a hug. “Good luck.” She turned and took Guy Diamond’s hand. They left together.

The rest of the gang also started to leave. Cooper snatched the rest of the cupcakes on the way out the door.

“Are you alright Harmony?” Poppy cracked the bathroom door open and peeked in.

“I’m in labor.” Harmony held her belly and leaned on the wall of the bathroom. She had just finished but was having a hard time walking.

Branch waited outside the door and listened to them. His felt a little anxious. Harmony was so young, and he worried about this birth.

“Let’s get you into bed. It’s going to be alright.” Poppy gently took her hand and helped her to the bedroom. She helped her get comfortable, and then sat beside her.

Harmony crawled into the bed and breathed hard. Tears filled her eyes and ran down her cheeks. She was scared.

Branch began collecting blankets and pillows. He made the bed comfortable for Harmony, and then sat and waited for the time to come.

Poppy dried Harmony’s tears and took her hand. She felt the young girl squeeze tight. “You are doing a good job.”

About an hour after the party ended, Harmony delivered a healthy baby girl. She had the same skin tone as her mama, with dark green hair. Poppy delivered her and cleaned her up as she let out cries.

Branch felt his heart squeeze. He came over and smiled at the little girl. She had already stolen his heart. “She is beautiful Harmony.”

Harmony cried as she listened to her daughter cry. She was both sad and relieved at the same time. She reached her arms out, wanting to hold her newborn. “Please, I want her.”

Poppy happily gave the young mother her daughter. She smiled and sat down beside her. “You did amazingly well for a first-time mother. I am proud of you.”

Harmony’s heart squeezed. She began to sob as she held her daughter to her chest. “She is not my first baby…”

Branch’s eyes went wide. He suddenly had one hundred questions to ask. 

Poppy’s heart sank. She had questions of her own and looked extremely concerned over Harmony’s tears. She hugged the new mother and talked soothingly to her. “What happened?”

“He killed my son.” Harmony buried her face into Poppy’s dress and cried hard. Her newborn daughter would never replace her loss, and her birth had brought back some extremely yucky memories.

“What?! Why would anyone do that?!” Poppy looked angry. She wanted to tell someone off.

“Poppy, calm down. She is hurting.” Branch put his hand on her shoulder. He could see that this was hard for Harmony.

“When I was sixteen years old, I gave birth to a son. He was very pleased that I gave him a boy, until he found out little Rusty was as blind as I was. When he realized that…” Harmony started to shake and cradled her daughter close. She was very upset.

“Oh Harmony, I am so sorry.” Poppy held Harmony. She looked sad and wasn’t sure how to comfort her.

Branch clenched his fists. He wanted to kill Harmony’s mate. No trolling ever deserved a death sentence. This was beyond cruel.

“I wasn’t going to let him kill another piece of my heart.” Harmony sniffled and looked down at her tiny daughter. She ran her finger down her delicate skin. “I want to name her Faith. Because of you two, I have restored faith in my life. I want to name her in your honor.”

“It is a beautiful name.” Poppy watched the little one. It seemed like a good name for her. “Very fitting and a huge honor indeed.”

Branch hugged Harmony and held her close. He silently vowed that if he ever got a hold of her rotten former mate that he would kill him. Harmony didn’t deserve that sort of heart break. She didn’t deserve any of the bad things that happened to her growing up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This ends part 2 of "Love Finds A Way." There will be an action packed part 3. I hope you all have enjoyed reading this so far!


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